The Undercover Life
by snapple79
Summary: Starts at the end of S3, but with an alternate ending. What happens when Sam is the one chosen to go undercover with Andy and not Nick? Can they get past their issues to get the job done? Will they be able to rekindle their relationship?
1. Chapter 1

**The Undercover Life**

I have been working on this story FOREVER and am so glad to finally start posting it. I had hoped to have it all out before S4 started, but that isn't going to happen given that S4 is right around the corner!

This story is equal parts exploring the Sam & Andy relationship, and exploring the procedural aspect of the UC. I created the idea for this UC long before we found out what Project Dakota really was about, so there won't be any similarities to the real story, from that point.

Sorry for the long A/N, but one more thing! I usually post chapters pretty quickly, but I'm leaving on vacation soon - and won't even have access to the internet for most of it - SO, it'll be at least a week before the 2nd chapter is posted. SORRY! Once I get back, the quick updates will return!

Please let me know what you think by leaving a review. :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Rookie Blue.

* * *

**Chapter 1 **

Andy stood in Luke's office in disbelief over the offer he'd just made. After pleading her case not even 12 hours earlier to be put on his Project Dakota taskforce, she thought the detective had meant it when he said he couldn't give her a spot. And now her emotions were on a roller-coaster, what with Luke's offer, and Sam telling her he loved her and pleading for her to give him another chance. It was too much. All she wanted was to go home and forget the day ever happened.

"I need your answer in five minutes," Luke said, pulling her from her thoughts.

Andy looked up at him, then back in the direction Sam had walked off too and then back at Luke. Just that morning she had pled her case that she wasn't _that _girl and that this job was a priority for her. Now she had to prove it with her actions. She still loved Sam, but what if she stayed and he walked away again the moment things got tough. She wasn't sure she could trust him to stay, and she didn't know if her heart could take it again when he left.

"I'm in." The words came out of her mouth before she could overthink it.

"Okay, I'll pick you up at your place in half an hour. Pack a small bag, nothing too flashy or expensive. Nothing personal. And tell_ no one_," he instructed. "I have to notify a couple more members of the taskforce."

Andy walked out of the station and got in a cab, so she could get back to her condo quickly and pack.

Once Andy had left his office, Luke got on the phone making a couple calls to notify other members of the taskforce that the undercover portion was starting earlier than expected. He had just hung up when he saw Sam walking down the hallway. "Swarek!" he called out the door of his office.

Sam sighed, but leaned against the doorframe. "Callaghan."

"You heard about the taskforce I'm setting up?" he asked.

"Yeah," Sam replied, acting bored with the conversation.

"Look, the timeframe moved up and one of my senior undercover officers can't go now because his mother's in the hospital. What do you think?"

Sam's eyebrows shot up in shock that Luke was inviting him onto his precious taskforce. He had been so absorbed in Jerry's death, he never gave it much of a second thought, but it was an interesting proposition. "When would you need me?"

"Tonight. I know it's short notice, but I could really use you," Luke replied. Truthfully, he figured Sam was one of very few people he'd be able to convince to go undercover on such short notice.

Sam thought about the invitation he had minutes earlier given to Andy. He asked her to meet him, but maybe what she needed was space to think over what he'd said. He could give her that by taking this job. When he returned, they could get that drink and start over. "Okay, I'll do it."

"Great. Look, I gotta pick up your partner first, but I'll swing by your place in about half an hour," Luke said.

Sam gave him a short nod in understanding before heading out to his truck. He drove by The Penny, idling outside for several minutes as he thought about whether or not she was waiting for him at the bar. He hoped he wasn't making a mistake, leaving like this after he told her he'd do whatever it took to win her back. Running off to an undercover job wasn't on that list, but he felt like he needed this. Time and space had given him the perspective of how much he needed her in his life, how much he loved her; maybe time and space was what they _both_ needed to realize where things went wrong and how to fix it, hot to fix _them_.

He pulled away from the curb, rushing home so he could pack before Luke picked him up.

* * *

Andy was rummaging through her drawers, trying to find the right clothes to bring on this job. Luke hadn't told her anything about her cover yet, or what she'd be doing, but he'd said nothing flashy. She threw in some jeans, a mini skirt, some casual tops and a couple sexier ones.

When she was satisfied she had everything she needed, she pulled out a couple pieces of paper and started the first of two notes. Luke had told her not to contact anyone before she left and she didn't want to break the rules again on another undercover operation, so she reluctantly obliged. But he never said she couldn't let someone know why she'd disappeared _after_ she left. It was a short note. She didn't have time to get into anything lengthy, but most importantly, it allowed her to apologize to Sam for not being able to say goodbye before she left. She hoped he'd understand, given all his time undercover, but she still needed to explain, even if briefly. The second note was for Traci, who she knew would check up on her condo for her once she realized she was gone. Among other things, she asked Traci to deliver the note to Sam for her. Andy could only hope they'd both understand why she had to leave.

She had just sealed the note to Traci when her phone buzzed with a text. It was Luke notifying her he was downstairs waiting. She shut off her phone and tossed it on the counter before picking up her bag and turning in a circle, taking one last look at her condo. This was it; there was no turning back. As of this moment, and for the indefinite future, she was no longer Andy McNally.

Andy tossed her bag in the backseat of Luke's car before settling into the passenger seat. "Got everything you need?" Luke asked. Andy nodded and took one last glance at her condo building. "Nothing personal? No cell phone?"

"No. I'm not an idiot Luke. I know what not to take undercover," she said with a little more attitude than she intended. It was just now that she was actually doing this, she was thinking about Sam and how pissed he was going to be that she left...again. She doubted herself for a moment on whether this was the right thing to do, but shook the thought away. She _had_ to do this, for herself.

"Alright. Look, we're gonna pick up your partner and then I'll give you your cover stories," he explained.

They sat silently as the car traveled through the city - she'd never had an allergy to silence when it came to Luke; was perfectly fine not talking with him. She was thinking about who her partner would be, if she would know him or her, if they'd be from another division, what their cover relationship would be. Andy was lost in her thoughts, staring out the window, but not paying attention to the surroundings. It was when Luke drove down a very familiar street, Andy's eyes snapped to attention, finally taking note of where they were. "Why...why are we here?" she asked nervously, as he slowed up and pulled to the curb.

"Told you, we're picking up your partner." Luke honked the horn, and Andy looked up at the building next to her to see Sam walking out of his apartment.

Sam was preoccupied, fiddling with his keys as he walked to the car and tossed his bag in the backseat. Sliding in after it, he closed the door and looked at the front seat. "Andy..."

"This wasn't planned and neither of you were my first choice," Luke said, his eyes darting back and forth between his two passengers. "But, I know you're capable and can get the job done. Plus, this way I won't have to deal with another 'Candace' ruining an operation."

Andy narrowed her eyes and scowled at his smirk, while Sam wanted to punch the detective. The car was deadly silent and the tension was thick. Neither Sam nor Andy had been prepared for this, for the other one to be their partner on this undercover assignment that could last months.

Luke passed a folder to each of them. "These are your covers and info about the assignment. You won't be able to take any of this with you, so read up as quickly as you can," he explained. He pulled away from the curb and waited a few minutes to start reviewing the information. At a stop light, he glanced over at both of them. "You're going after Terry O'Connor, the head of a very large and successful child trafficking operation. The front is a legitimate adoption operation, claiming to specialize in international adoptions."

"Legitimate?" Sam asked, wondering how they could pass child trafficking off as something legal.

"Yes, they place a small number of children that were legitimately put up for adoption into loving homes. They keep up appearances of a normal adoption agency to prevent suspicion," Luke said.

"So, how did we find out there's anything illegal going on?" Andy asked.

"Word on the street for a long time has been that O'Connor was the one to go to for child slaves. Someone on the inside was arrested during a regular traffic stop; idiot was in possession of marijuana. He can't give us enough to bring O'Connor down, but we cut a deal with him. He's your contact and your way in," he explained.

The car fell silent again as Sam and Andy continued to review the files. They were going in as Ally Sampson and Matt Miller, a young couple from Montreal trying to find a new life after Matt had one too many run-ins with the cops in that city.

"That's your inside man, Carlos Lorenzo," Luke said when he glanced over at Andy and saw her looking at his photo. "Swarek, you're his buddy looking for work. As for you, Andy, they've had some trouble with the kids being scared and nervous. They've been bringing more women into the operation to help with that, to keep the kids calm."

The trio continued chatting about what was known about the operation and soon enough, they arrived at their destination. Luke stopped in front of a bus stop, knowing it wasn't safe to drive them directly to their apartment." Take this bus four stops, then walk two blocks east. Here's the address of your apartment," he said, handing a piece of paper to Andy. He then pulled their new IDs and two burn phones out of a brown bag, handed them over to the couple. "Alright, that's it. Any questions?"

Andy pulled her bottom lip between her teeth as she looked over at Sam and back at Luke. She shook her head.

"We've got it, Callaghan," Sam said.

"Good luck," Luke said.

Sam and Andy got out of the car, and he grabbed their bags. As they watched Luke drive away, Andy took her bag from Sam. "I got it," she said.

"I can carry your bag, McNally."

"Ally," she corrected him, already worried about who might be within earshot.

"_Ally_, gimme your bag," he said, walking over to the bench in front of the bus stop with her.

"S'ok, Matt. I got it."

He shook his head at how stubborn she could be sometimes, but let it go. They had more pressing issues to talk about once they got into the confines of their apartment. Like how to get over the massive baggage they brought with them into this op.

* * *

It was less than 45 minutes later when they walked up to the old apartment building that would be their home. They made their way up to the third floor and into the one-bedroom apartment. Sam walked around checking everything out as Andy stood near the door taking in her new home. She was still a little shell-shocked that she was going to be spending the indefinite future undercover with Sam. "I'll take the couch," he said, pulling her from her thoughts. She said nothing, simply moving further into the room.

"We'll have to get some groceries tomorrow, but if you're hungry, we can order pizza or something," he said, watching her eyes dart around the room.

"Uh, no, I'm fine, not hungry," she said, finally looking over at him.

"Okie dokie." He shrugged his shoulders.

Andy made her way to the bedroom and unpacked her clothes into the only small dresser in the room, making sure to leave room for Sam's things. She stared at her reflection in a dirty mirror hung haphazardly on the wall and saw the dark circles under her eyes. She was tired and all she wanted to do was crawl into bed, but she knew they had to talk and it was better to get it out of the way so they could focus on their job.

She walked back into the living room and found Sam looking out the window and she could tell he was assessing their surroundings. "Sam?"

He turned around at her voice and took a few cautious steps toward her. "Yeah?"

She was going to tell him they should talk, get the elephant out of the room before too much time passed, but those weren't the words that came out. "You were gonna leave without telling me?"

"Just like you," he threw back at her.

She regretted her accusation and stepped closer so there wasn't half a room in between them. "I left a note," she said quietly. Sam's eyebrows shot up at her admission. "I don't think I was supposed to, but I did."

"I tried calling you. It went straight to voicemail," he admitted. He'd been sitting on his couch waiting for Luke when he dialed her number; was going to see if she'd take a rain check on that drink. Neither of them were obviously good at following the rules. "I didn't think you'd come to The Penny. I thought you wanted space...so I was going to give it to you."

"I don't like time and space. I...I think I was going to come." Truthfully, she never had to force herself to make the decision, having been cornered by Luke and his invitation first. But she thinks her heart would've convinced her to go.

"You were?" In two strides he was face to face with her, his hand coming to rest lightly on her arm. She nodded in response to his question. "I meant what I said earlier, everything. I want to make it up to you. I'm sorry."

"I don't know what to make of this, Sam. I was ready to have a drink, not..." She looked around the room and waved her hand around. "Not move in together. I don't know how we do this."

"If either of us back out now - "

"No, we can't do that. We just...I don't know." She pulled from the light grasp of his hand and sat down on the couch.

Sam pinched the bridge of his nose. Of course things couldn't be easy. They couldn't be sharing a drink at The Penny as he tried to make amends. They had to be thrust into living together before they'd even had a chance to talk. So, he figured they both needed to do what he did best - compartmentalize. "We become our characters. We're not Sam and Andy anymore. We just...We deal with Sam and Andy's complicated life when we get back. For now..." he said, sitting down next to her. "For now, we're Matt and Ally. We're friends with Carlos and ready to work for Terry O'Conner."

"Right, Matt and Ally, a happy couple." She nodded vigorously, as if trying to make herself believe it. "Do you think we can do this?"

"No matter what's happened between us, there's still no one I'd rather have watching my back," he said.

She nodded again, this time much more confidently. "Me too."

Sam looked around the apartment. It wasn't the Four Seasons, but it was halfway decent. They had a couch and oversized chair circled around a television creating a small living room area. Behind the couch was a small kitchen table situated near a row of cabinets, a small stove and fridge. The apartment looked like it was last decorated in the 1970s, but it was clean. They'd manage. He'd been in a lot worse.

He got up and walked toward the small window of the kitchen sink. "We've got good views of the street and the alley," he commented. He was used to sizing up his surroundings as soon as he entered a new UC. Knowing what he was dealing with calmed any nerves he might have...usually. This time his nerves were eating at him, but he couldn't tell if it was because he had another life to keep safe on this assignment or just _who_ that life was. "It's late. We, uh, we should get some sleep," he suggested, turning back to where she was still sitting on the couch.

"Yeah, yeah," she said standing. "Big day tomorrow."

"You take the bed. I'll be fine on the couch," Sam said as he began rummaging through his duffle bag.

Andy nodded, even though he wasn't looking at her, and took a couple steps toward the bedroom before stopping. "Sam?" She waited until he looked up at her. "I know you left to give us time and space, but, uh, don't do that here. I need to know you're fully _here_ with me, that we can survive this assignment."

"Agreed. We only have each other here. No time and space," he agreed. As she turned toward the bedroom, he decided that even if they weren't going to talk, he needed to know something. "Andy...Can I ask...you know why I took the job, but, uh, why'd you take it?"

Andy glanced down at her fidgeting hands. "Before you..." She looked up so her eyes could connect with his, knowing that whatever words she fumbled over to get this out, he'd be able to read what she was truly saying with her eyes. "Before everything that happened...the grenade, everything...this morning, I pleaded with Luke to put me on the taskforce. Begged him. I needed a change. I needed..."

"To get away from me," Sam finished for her.

"It was too hard seeing you every day when you...When I felt like you wanted nothing to do with me. So I begged him, even after he said no, I begged for the position. When he offered it to me after...even after everything you said, I...I couldn't say no. I had to prove to him, to myself, that I wasn't _that girl_ everyone seems to accuse me of being," she explained. Maybe not everyone, but her mom and Luke basically telling her the same thing within an hour of each other made it feel like that.

"Guess the universe had another plan for us," he said, trying to crack a small smile. It was ironic really, they both took the assignment to get away from the other, but here they were, together with nowhere to run.

She let out a quick laugh and walked to the bedroom, pausing in the doorway. "Goodnight, Sam."

"Night, McNally."

Andy laid down in bed and despite sleeping alone for nearly the last two months, she rolled onto her side wishing the other half of the bed wasn't empty. She knew it was for the best that Sam slept on the couch, but knowing he was so close she couldn't help but miss how his arms would wrap around her when they used to fall asleep together. Instead, she wrapped her arms around herself and willed herself to fall asleep.

In the next room Sam tossed and turned trying to find a comfortable spot on the couch. All he could think about was Andy lying in bed in the next room. After everything he'd done to push her away, he could only blame himself for the stiff neck he was going to have in the morning. He knew they agreed to focus on the job and not them, but he couldn't help but wish she was falling asleep in his arms.


	2. Chapter 2

I'm back! Thank you all for your patience in the delay – and to show my thanks this is only one of two chapters you'll get this weekend! :) Bear with me a bit with this chapter as it's mostly just setting the groundwork for the undercover. Things get more exciting soon. Please leave a review to let me know what you think. :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Rookie Blue.

* * *

**Chapter 2 **

Sam and Andy woke up the next morning and turned the cameras on, knowing they had to get used to doing that. They quietly got showered and dressed, each not wanting to get in the other's space. He knew they couldn't continue to walk on eggshells if they were going to survive this undercover job, but he needed to get some strong coffee in him before he broached that subject with Andy.

They ended up at a nearby dinner, and as if on cue, the moment they walked through the door, they became Matt and Ally. They acted and chatted like their alter egos would while they ate breakfast because they never knew if the person sitting at the next table could be part of Terry's operation.

When they finished, they stopped by the grocery store, picking up enough food to fill their empty cabinets. Back at the apartment, Andy was placing some fruit they bought into a bowl and paused as she was holding an apple. The way she had her fingers wrapped around it reminded her how she'd been holding a grenade only the day before. Her breath started to quicken as suddenly she wasn't in the undercover apartment with Sam. She was back in that large kitchen, chaos going on all around her as she gripped a bomb.

Sam saw her freeze, watched her eyes glaze over, noticed how she was gripping the apple tightly. He put a hand on her shoulder and she jumped, but the touch succeeded in bringing her out of her daze. "You okay?" he asked softly.

She nodded as she tried to find her voice. "Yeah, fine."

He shook his head in disbelief and wondered how she'd managed to escape the usually mandatory appointment with a shrink after a near-death experience. He'd been to a few himself, knew there was never a way out of them. Yet, here she was undercover less than 24 hours after holding a bomb. He wasn't a shrink, but right now he had to be the best substitute for one. "You know, usually there's a mandatory session with a shrink after something like yesterday," he started, trying to gauge her reaction.

She practically threw the apple into the bowl with the rest of the fruit. "I don't need a shrink. I'm _fine_."

"Andy, I'm not...you held a bomb. I want to make sure you're okay. For once, just talk to me," he said softly.

"I don't know what you want to hear from me, Sam. That I was scared?" She leaned back against the counter, hands gripping the edge. "That I knew if I didn't hold it tightly enough, it could go off, but if I held it too tightly it might go off just the same? That not only could I be killing myself, but you too? That...that on top of everything _you_ had to be there…telling me…Ugh. What do you want to hear Sam? Tell me what you want to hear."

He could tell by the way the words flew out of her mouth that she needed this. She couldn't be holding this in. He needed her to get it out now. "Were you scared?" he asked, gently.

"I was holding a bomb."

"Why'd you take it from her?" he asked.

She furrowed her eyebrows, looking at him like he had two heads. "She's a little girl, has the rest of her life ahead of her. It's what we do, serve and protect the people of Toronto. What else was I supposed to do?"

"Wait for bomb squad. Let them take care of it," he said simply. He didn't know how to ask this next question, but knew he had to. Knew it was the most basic of questions for any shrink to ask after this type of experience. "Did you, uh...you didn't want it to go off, did you?" He knew it was different for cops, that they had to put their life on the line as part of the job, but he had to question if there was anything suicidal about what she'd done.

Her eyes went wide at his question. "No. No," she said, shaking her head adamantly. "I...It wasn't like that. I...For the first time, I didn't overthink something. I just acted. All I thought about was saving a terrified little girl. If anything, it was self-preservation because I thought she could drop the grenade."

"It could've gone off as you took it from her. She could've dropped it then," he said.

"Sam, you didn't see her. She was shaking, terrified. I _had_ to take it from her." Her eyes were pleading with him to understand, and he did. He knew he would've done the same thing.

"Okay, okay." He raised a hand in understanding. "I just...It's you and me for the next however many months. I just need to know you're okay. And it's true about the shrink visits. They're usually required after something like yesterday, so this is a unique situation."

"I know. Look, I promise if I think it's becoming a problem, I'll tell you. I'll have Luke pull me. I won't put us at risk," she told him.

"I'm not questioning that. I…uh…I just want to make sure you're okay," he said. "And I'm here, you know. I won't think you're weak if you need to talk about it."

A small smile graced her lips. "I…I know. Thank you."

* * *

Later that night, Sam and Andy got ready for their first meeting with their target. It was informal, a simple get together with an "old friend" - their informant Carlos - so they could be introduced to Terry. Then it was all on them to make Terry want to hire them.

"You know the goal for tonight, right?" Sam asked when Andy emerged from the bedroom ready to go.

"Yup. We need to make him like us, but can't push too much because that could make him nervous. And learn whatever we can about his operations," she answered.

"And..." he prompted.

She furrowed her eyebrows as he helped her into a jacket before the light bulb went on in her head. "And keep it as real as possible."

"Exactly. The more real we keep it, the less chance one of us will contradict the other. And any embellishments to our stories, we review when we get home. We need to know what the other has said. They can't catch us lying," he said.

Andy nodded. This was the most dangerous part of being undercover. It wasn't the amount of drugs or guns they'd encounter, it was getting caught in a lie. And she knew now this was why Sam had been so cautious earlier to make sure her head on was straight. She could risk their lives if she wasn't in this 100 percent.

"We can do this," he told her.

"I know."

"Let's go then," Sam said, heading toward the door.

They took a cab to Clover's Bar, the hang out for Terry and his associates, and where they had planned to meet up with Carlos.

"You ready?" Sam whispered in her ear as he reached around her to put his hand on the door of the bar. Andy nodded, but he could tell she was nervous, that same deer in the headlights look on her face that she had before they walked into The Mermaid Lounge. "Relax. You have to relax."

Andy's heart was beating so hard she thought it was going to pop out of her chest. How was she going to do this? So many people had put faith in her and she couldn't handle the thought of letting everyone down. She took a deep breath as she felt Sam's free hand slide up her back and caress the warm skin on the back of her neck gently. Knowing he needed to do something before someone got curious about why they were just standing in front of the door, he used the hand on her neck to tilt her face toward him and he pressed his lips against hers. The feel of his warm lips on hers shocked her for a moment, but she knew why he'd kissed her. It had been so long since they'd been in this position she missed the familiarity of it. But because it had been so long, it also felt awkward and foreign to her.

"You can do this," he whispered against her lips as he pulled away.

She nodded again, his touches helping to calm her. "I'm good. I'm _good,_" she insisted.

Believing her this time, he pushed open the door and followed Andy into the bar. As the door shut behind them, they took in the surroundings; the loud music, waitresses floating about with trays full of drinks, and a party tucked away in the corner they recognized as their targets. Not seeing Carlos, Sam looked at his watch; they were right on time. "Maybe he's late. Let's a get a drink," Sam suggested, looking over at the bar.

They had just told the bartender what they wanted, when the man they were meeting walked toward them. "Matty!" Carlos bellowed out like they were old friends.

"Carlos, good to see you brother." Sam stuck out his hand meeting Carlos' as they leaned in for a brotherly hug. "You remember Ally?"

"Never forget a beautiful face, sweetheart," Carlos said, before giving her a hug.

"Carlos, you're a darling," Andy said.

"Glad you guys could make it. Why don't I introduce you to some of my friends," he suggested, following the plan he was given earlier that day. He nodded over his shoulder to the group in the back corner and Sam saw a couple of the guys looking their way.

Sam and Andy grabbed their drinks off the bar and followed Carlos. Sam's free hand slid into hers easily, her fingers wrapping around his automatically as her heart did a flip-flop. It was easy, simple, normal. Still, after all the time apart, their hands molded together like two pieces of a puzzle. But this wasn't about them. They were putting on a show as Matt and Ally, a loving couple; something Sam & Andy weren't anymore. She had to force herself to get her head in the game and focus on charming Terry and his men.

Carlos made introductions, calling Matt and Ally his "old friends from Montreal." They were introduced to Terry O'Connor, who they both recognized from the files Luke showed them. Then there was Rob and Benny, who seemed to be Terry's right-hand guys. A handful of other introductions were made as Sam and Andy committed all the faces and names to memory.

"I'm Suzy, Benny's other half," said the lone woman in the group, as she introduced herself to Andy. "Have a seat. Save me from all this testosterone." Her laugh was infectious and Andy couldn't help but smile as she made her way to the empty chair next to the woman.

"Let the guys talk. You know how they do their own thing," Suzy said.

"That I do," Andy said laughing.

"So, you're new to Toronto? What brought you here?" Suzy asked, before taking a sip of her beer.

"Found out our friends weren't really our friends." Andy took a sip of her drink as Suzy gave her an understanding look. "It was time to get out, y'know? So, we decided to move here."

"Yeah, well, I'm sure you'll both feel right at home here. If you're Carlos' friend, you've already got a family here," Suzy said.

"I hope so," Andy said, displaying her megawatt smile. "I just want to be happy with Matty, settle in for our future. Can I tell you a secret?" She leaned in as Suzy nodded eagerly. "I flip through those home and garden magazines, and just want one of those homes. But I know we'll never be able to afford it." This was her cover, wanting a life Ally and Matt couldn't afford, as that would place the seed that they would do anything for money. "But I keep hoping maybe someday."

Suzy bit her bottom lip, knowing she wasn't supposed to talk about business to strangers. But she couldn't help wanting to give her new friend some hope. "Don't give up on those dreams. They might not be as farfetched as you think."

"I hope your right," Andy replied, following Suzy's gaze to where Sam, Benny and Terry were talking.

"So, you've moved here for good then, no going back to Montreal?" Benny asked Sam.

"For sure, man. Been burned one too many times there. Time for a new life for me and my girl," he said, cocking an eyebrow toward Andy.

"You, uh, found any work yet?" Terry asked.

"Not yet, just rolled into town yesterday. Figure I'll take some odd jobs until I can get something more permanent," he replied.

"Well, if Carlos can vouch for you..." Carlos nodded his head when Terry turned his way. "I might be able to find something for you."

"Oh, man, that would be great. I'm a hard worker. You give me a job and I'll get it done," Sam said.

"Hard to find workers that'll do anything asked of them these days," Terry mused.

"Well, that's me. You give me a job and I'll get it done," Sam said.

"Ok, well, I'll give you a call tomorrow if I think I have something," Terry said.

"That'd be great," Sam replied. His face displayed the relief of someone moving into a new town without any means of support. "If you don't me asking, what business are you in?"

"Adoption. Many different types of it," Terry said simply.

Sam looked around and noticed Benny had become engrossed in a debate with Rob, and he decided it was time to ease up on the job and business talk. He saw a hockey game on the TV and decided that was safe territory.

As the night went on, Sam and Andy mingled with the group, laughing and exchanging stories. Andy felt like it was going well; they were obviously liked by these people and making friends quickly. When she came back from the bar with a round of drinks, she sat next to Sam, pressing a kiss to his cheek as she did so. He smiled back at her, not only as loving boyfriend Matt, but as someone who missed the feel of her lips on him. He knew he had no right feeling that way right now and he couldn't risk letting his mind wander from their assignment, so he forced the thoughts away.

Sam couldn't help but notice how Rob's eyes rarely left Andy's body the entire night and it made his stomach turn. He knew he had no claim over her anymore, but he hated the way some sleazy guy was eyeing her up and down. And well, Matt had a claim to Ally, and he might just have to stake that claim.

* * *

Hours later Terry O'Connor sat at his kitchen table with a bottle of beer and two of his associates. "What do you think of Matt?"

"He doesn't have experience with kids, but from what Carlos said, he's done a lot of drug trafficking. Seems to be a quick learner. Could be pretty useful," Benny answered.

Rob took a swig of his beer. "How does Carlos know him?" he asked.

"Said they go way back," Terry replied. The three men seem to contemplate the potential new member of their team and the slow dripping of the faucet was the only sound in the room.

"I'd vote for trying him out. We need more guys, boss," Benny said, breaking the silence.

Terry looked over at Rob, eyebrows raised in question. "Sure, why not, let's try him out," Rob replied.

"We could get a bonus with his girlfriend too," Benny said.

"Ally?" Terry asked, trying to remember her.

Benny nodded. "Suzy really likes her and thinks she'd work well to keep the kids calm. You know we've had some trouble there lately, boss."

"She's one hot chick. I could deal with spending lots of long nights with that piece of ass," Rob said, and everyone knew where his thoughts had traveled to.

"Women can be tough. Sometimes their soft spot is too soft. Did you get a feel for her?" Terry asked Benny.

"I think she's eager. Loves kids, but money speaks to her. Suzy said something about Ally wanting to stash money aside for her dream house someday," he replied.

"So, if we pay them enough, they'll do whatever we want. Okay, let's get them both on board," Terry decided. "Rob, poke into their background a bit, make sure they are who they say they are. In the meantime, I'll invite them to the barbeque Friday night, so we can all get to know each other a little better."


	3. Chapter 3

Here you have it, the next chapter! Hope everyone is enjoying the ride. :) Reviews are like little presents every time they pop up into my inbox, so please leave one and let me know what you think. :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Rookie Blue.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

"We're in," Sam told Andy when he got off the phone.

"What?" she asked, excitedly bouncing off the couch.

"That was Terry. He's having a barbeque and wants us to meet some of the other people who work for him. Said there was a job he wanted to talk to me about," he said grinning.

"Sam, this is great!" she said, trying not seem overly excited, but truly bursting at the seams. They had successfully gotten their foot in the door.

"He didn't talk specifics, but I got the feeling it'll be on the legit side of the business, so we'll still have to work to get further inside. It'll just take time," he said.

"Well, we just have to be patient. If he likes us this quickly to offer you a job, it's only a matter of time," she said.

Sam nodded in agreement before suggesting they call Luke to update him.

The next days passed slowly for Sam and Andy as they waited for the barbeque. It was a lot of sitting around and waiting. They quizzed each other on their covers, scoped out the neighborhood and even stopped at a local bookstore to pick up some reading material.

The afternoon before the barbeque, Andy was sitting on the couch, back pressed up against the side, knees up to her chest, an open book resting on the top of her knees. _To Kill A Mockingbird_ was one of the books she'd picked up at the bookstore – tried to tell herself it was because she hadn't read it since high school, but really all she could think about was Sam referencing it during his speech the night they left. She thought maybe she'd get some insight into Sam by reading it, but now she'd read the same sentence half a dozen times before realizing she couldn't get Sam and what happened between them out of her head.

She looked over the back of the couch to where Sam was putting dishes away in the kitchen. "Hey, Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"Can we, uh, talk about something?" she asked, closing the book and placing it on the coffee table.

"Sure," he said, and walked over to the couch. "Worried about tomorrow?"

She shook her head. "Um, no, it's not that. It's..."

He raised his eyebrows, urging her to continue.

"Did you mean it? What you said…the day we left." She sunk her teeth into her bottom lip as her doe eyes stared at Sam.

He was a little stunned at the question, thought he proved he meant it with his pleading speech. But maybe _that's _what she was wondering about. He sat down on the couch, one bent leg resting on the cushions as he faced her. "I did."

She remained silent for solid minute, her eyes taking in every emotion on his face, every movement of his body. She could read him like no other and could often hear more from his actions and emotions than the words that came out of his mouth. "Then why…six weeks. You hurt me. You broke my heart, Sam."

"You hurt me too." At her confused expression, he continued. "You disappeared for _three_ _months_ to Temagami or wherever the hell you went."

"I thought we were past that," she said, frowning.

"Maybe I'm not."

He lit a fire with his response and there was no way he could miss the anger laced with her next words. "So, breaking up with me, not talking to me unless it was work related for _six_ weeks. That was all revenge, getting me back? Keeping score?"

Sam rubbed a hand over his face. "I don't know, Andy." He shrugged and guessed on some level it probably was. Letting her know what it felt like to need someone so bad it hurt, and for them to not be there.

"You know why I left," she said softly. "I emailed you. I called you before I left. I was saving our jobs. You know we wouldn't've been able to stay apart for three months. We couldn't even last a week away from each other while you were under."

"I needed you," he replied, clenching and unclenching the fist that rested on his thigh, the hand that Brennan had nearly fractured.

"I'm sorry you thought the decision I made was - "

"A decision _we_ should've made _together_," he interrupted. Maybe he would've been okay with her leaving if she had talked to him, actually talked _with_ him beforehand. If they could've made the decision _together_.

"Just like the decision _you_ made to break up with me. For what? Because you blamed me for Jerry's death? Because you hate me? Because...because..." She was nearly yelling now, only keeping her voice low enough so the neighbors wouldn't hear. She was sick of Sam blaming her for everything that went wrong with them. "Maybe it's because you never really loved me."

She blurted the words out in spite, and regretted it the moment they left her mouth. The way Sam was looking at her it was like she'd sucker punched him; this mix of hurt and anger radiating from his face. It broke her already broken heart. This discussion, or argument, or whatever it was they were having was not getting them anywhere. It was only leaving them both more frustrated and angry than before, which was not what they needed while they were undercover.

"Maybe we shouldn't...This isn't...Forget I said anything. Forget about us. Let's stay focused on the job," she said timidly.

"Yeah," Sam huffed out as he stood up and stormed toward the door. "I need some air...and space." With that, the front door to their crappy apartment was slammed shut.

Andy sighed and buried her face in her hands. That wasn't the way she envisioned that conversation going. She wanted to ask him why a dog named Boo. She wanted to bring up the elephant in the room of him saying he loved her; wanted to see if he still did as much as she still loved him. Instead, they'd simply blamed one another and pissed each other off.

* * *

They spent an awkward 24 hours before the barbeque walking around the apartment trying to avoid each other. A dozen words spoken between them until it was time to leave for Terry's house.

As they were shrugging on their jackets, Sam turned to face Andy. "Look, I know we're pissed with each other right now, but Matt and Ally can't be," he said, using his TO voice she knew too well. "If this is going to work, we have to be a happy couple."

"All I have to do is pretend to be your loving girlfriend. I _think_ I can manage that," she said with some attitude. She knew he felt it was his job as the senior officer to make sure they were both prepared for what they were about to walk into. But this wasn't her first day on the job; she knew how to make it look real between them.

When they pulled up to Terry's house just outside of the city limits, Andy took it all in. It was a large gated property that she couldn't help admit left her in awe. The house was more like a mansion, stone and brick decorating the outside, with a well-manicured lawn and elegant garden ornaments. There were more than a dozen cars parked in the long driveway and it seemed like they were among the last to arrive.

They were greeted by Terry when they knocked on the door and exchanged some pleasantries. He encouraged them to make themselves at home as he led them to the large living room where most of the guests were gathered.

For the first hour they were left to mingle with the 20 or so other guests, including those they met the other night, and stuck pretty close to each other. They were feeling out everyone they met, trying to gauge how involved everyone was with the illegal side of the operation. They played the role of a happy couple, her hand grazing his back or arm, his arm most often wrapped around her waist.

Andy simultaneously loved how comfortable it felt with Sam and cursed it given how complicated things were right now. Sam enjoyed taking advantage of the situation, and also hated how much he missed holding her like this. He was listening to a conversation Andy was having with someone they just met as his eyes skimmed the room, stopping when he saw Rob nearly drooling as his gaze was fixed on Andy.

Sam tugged her closer, throwing a chuckle into the conversation when he heard her explaining how Matt and Ally met. She glanced up at him with her megawatt smile. "Yeah, you can say he fell for me hard."

"What can I say, she knocked me down from the moment I laid eyes on her," he said, giving her a knowing smile as they both thought about that first day. Still seeing Rob out of the corner of his eye, he slid his hand into Andy's back pocket, pulling her even closer. She nearly spit out her drink when she felt his hand there. It wasn't that it made her feel uncomfortable – it was something he used to do all the time as they stood at the bar at The Penny with their friends – but given the current circumstances, it wasn't something she was expecting. She knew someone had to be watching, that 'Matt' was somehow staking his claim on 'Ally.' She, uh, didn't mind as much as she should. Despite the fight the day before, she missed Sam's hands on her.

"The best woman do that, knock you down with one look," Terry said, interrupting the conversation. "Excuse me, mind if I steal you two away for a moment?"

"Sure," Sam said, as they both nodded.

Terry escorted them to the other side of the house where his office was. Sam immediately noticed how large it was and that he kept it locked, meaning he probably did a lot of his business right from home.

"Have a seat. Glad you guys could make it tonight," Terry said as he sat down behind a large desk in his office.

"Thanks for inviting us," Sam said as he and Andy sat in chairs on the other side of the desk.

"Everyone is so nice. It's been great meeting them and making friends since we don't know many people in Toronto yet," Andy said.

"You seem like good people, and everyone out there seems to agree," he said, waving his hand toward the door. "Also, seems like you've had a tough time of it lately and I'd like to help you out. I'd like to offer you both jobs."

Sam and Andy glanced at each other quickly before she blurted out, "Both of us?"

Terry smiled at her response. "If you're interested."

"Absolutely. That would, wow, that would be great, man," Sam said.

Terry slid a couple brochures across the desk. "We provide domestic and international adoptions. Some are open where all the parties know each other, some even keep in touch, while others are closed with neither party knowing the other." He let them skim through the brochures before continuing. "I like my teams working in partners, usually a female who can take the lead with the children and a guy to help make sure everything goes according to plan. That's why I'd like to bring you both in, to work together."

"Thanks for giving us a chance," Sam said. "I know you don't know us well and it means a lot. We came to a new city to start a new life and you're helping to give us that. Maybe one day I'll be able to give Ally the dream house she's so intent on having."

"I know you better than you think," Terry replied, and Sam didn't miss the sly look on his face. "And if things work out as I think they will, I may have some additional opportunities for you down the road. Some more profitable opportunities." He cocked his head knowingly at Sam. "Some matters that need to be handled by a very select few. I've looked into your past work Matt, and I like what I see."

"Well, I'm open to anything you want to throw at me. We both are," he said, looking at Andy, who was smiling.

After their meeting with Terry, Sam and Andy spent the next two hours mingling. Eventually they found their way outside where a dozen or so people were lounging around the pool. Andy took a seat on the end of a lounge chair and Sam quickly realized that was the only seat left. He wasn't sure how she was going to react to this, but he swung a leg over the chair and straddled it behind her.

Andy cursed her body for tensing when she felt Sam right up against her back. It just felt odd doing something that felt so intimate, even though they were just sitting together. She felt his chest up against her back as he leaned in. "No other chairs," he whispered in her ear.

She rested a hand on his leg and turned her head to face him, giving him a large smile, letting him know it was okay. They sat like that for a while and chatted with everyone. They weren't learning much about the operation, but the party was giving them an opportunity to size up who they'd be working with and who might cause them trouble.

Sam's hands had found their way to her waist, his thumbs absentmindedly sliding under her shirt to brush against her warm skin. She tried to hide the shiver that ran through her body at his touch. "You doing okay?" he whispered in her ear.

Andy nodded as she looked over her shoulder. "I'm great. You?"

"You want another drink?" he asked.

Andy saw Suzy walking in the grass away from everyone and decided to see if she wanted company. "No. I'm gonna go talk to Suzy," she told him.

"Okie dokie," he said, watching her stand up. She excused herself from the crowd and headed in Suzy's direction. She'd wanted to talk to her all night, felt like Suzy might be a good ally and a way for her and Sam to make their way deeper into the organization.

"Hey, want some company?" she asked as she approached her new friend, who was now sitting on the grass. When Suzy nodded, Andy sat down, stretching her legs out in front of her as she leaned back on her hands. "This is such a beautiful property."

"When Benny's doing business with Terry that I'm not a part of I love walking the grounds. It's peaceful and quiet, reminds me of the farm I grew up on," Suzy mused.

"So you haven't lived in the city your whole life?" Andy asked.

Suzy shook her head. "No, I didn't have the greatest father, especially after my mom died, so I ran away when I was 14. Had dreams of this amazing big city and the opportunities it had. Hitchhiked my way to Toronto."

Andy could sympathize a bit. She'd never actually run away, but a couple of times after her dad had come home in the wee hours of the morning in a drunken stupor, she'd given it serious thought. "Did the city live up to your expectations?"

She forced out a laugh as she picked at the grass beside her. "Not at first. I came here with twenty bucks, so I started hooking just so I could eat. Spent a few years doing that." She glanced up at Andy before focusing back on the grass. "You get used to it. Stop feeling sorry for yourself, stop trying to find a way enjoy it. You just do it, or let it be done _to _you, like any other job."

Andy sat forward and crossed her legs as she laid a comforting hand on Suzy's shoulder. "But something changed. How'd you get here?" she asked softly.

"Terry was a client, one of my regulars. He didn't treat me like a whore like a lot of the guys I met. He eventually hooked me up with some of his friends. You don't even know, Ally, these guys would pay me in one night what I'd make in a week. I felt like maybe I could finally save up enough money so one day I could get out of the life." She stared out across the open yard, a small smile slowly breaking out across her face.

"Then I met Benny. I'd run into him when I was here for Terry or his friends. I was ashamed at first that he knew what I was, but he didn't care. I wouldn't go out with him at first, so he paid for a night with me. Took me out to dinner, drove me home, refused to go to bed with me." She laughed thinking back to that night and what a gentleman Benny had been.

"Benny sounds like a catch, a wonderful guy," Andy mused.

"He is. I can't imagine my life without him now," she said smiling. "After that night, I knew I couldn't be with another guy. I approached Terry and explained why I needed to break things off with him and his friends. I didn't even give a thought to how I'd make enough money to eat, but before I left his office, he'd given me a job, a real job. I'd do anything for both of them. _Anything_."

Andy couldn't imagine how horrible things could be for someone that they'd turn to prostitution. Her heart was sad for Suzy. But she also realized why she was part of this; she felt indebted to Terry. He gave her a new start, so she could have a life with the man she loved.

"I'm glad things worked out for you," Andy said, giving her a smile. "So, you work with the adoptions?" Now that Andy knew why Suzy was here and how committed she was to Terry, she needed to see what type of info she'd give up about the operation.

"I spend about half my time with the adoptions and then I do some other work for Terry. Benny told me you and Matt might be joining us?" Suzy asked.

"Looks like we will be. Terry hired us tonight. We're grateful, and it's such a great cause, helping babies find homes," Andy replied, making sure to sound excited.

Suzy quickly changed the subject, asking more about Matt and Ally's relationship, how they met, when she knew she was in love. Keeping it as close to the truth as possible, Andy's heart softened remembering all the good times she and Sam had. She only wished things hadn't shattered apart when Jerry died.

When Sam and Andy were back in the car, Sam was ready to shake off the charade of being a loving doting couple, but he could tell something was wrong with Andy. His mood toward her had already started to soften, as he watched her work the room tonight, as he enjoyed holding her in his arms, and he wanted to take away the sadness he saw in her eyes right now. "What's wrong? Something happen in there?"

She heard the concern in his voice and turned her head to face him as he pulled onto the street. "I was talking to Suzy. She's had a hard life, ran away from home, became a prostitute. In her mind, Terry and Benny are the best things to ever happen to her. She's a smart girl, had so much potential."

"So, she's in this because of loyalty to them?" he asked.

Andy nodded. "Don't think she'd be in it otherwise. I can tell she's a compassionate person. But she grew up being okay letting men use her. I don't think she sees much wrong with what's being done to these girls. Probably even thinks it's a good thing for those they pull out of horrible lives." She stared out the window and silence enveloped the car for several minutes. "It makes me sad. What she went through, what she's okay with because of her unyielding loyalty."

"It's that lion's heart of yours," he said, reaching a hand out to squeeze her leg gently. "One of the first things I loved about you…even if it gets you into trouble sometimes." With the last words, he threw a smile at her before focusing back on the road.

Andy couldn't help but smile as she stared at him, wondering if he realized what he'd said about loving her. Wondered if there was any of it left inside him.


	4. Chapter 4

I know I couldn't get this chapter out soon enough for some of you after the last chapter. lol I think you'll all really enjoy it. :) And please keep those reviews coming; I love knowing what you're all thinking about this story!

Disclaimer: I don't own Rookie Blue.

* * *

**Chapter 4**

Despite how easy things had been at Terry's barbeque, things returned to being awkward the moment they were back in the apartment. However, anytime they were out as Matt and Ally, things seemed and felt easier. They buried themselves in their characters and played their roles as a two halves of a loving couple wonderfully. But back in their apartment when they were Sam and Andy again, it felt like they walked on eggshells around each other. Neither wanting to say the wrong thing or ask the wrong question.

Lately, Sam was just generally irritable because of the lack of sleep he was getting on the uncomfortable couch. He thought about getting a cot they could stick somewhere, something easy to hide if anyone came over, but would give him some relief at night.

Several nights after the barbeque, Sam and Andy decided to go out to a restaurant that wasn't far from their apartment and that Suzy had insisted they give a try. As had become usual when they were out in public, they immediately took on their undercover personas throughout dinner, chatting about things Matt and Ally would talk about and not Sam and Andy.

They were walking down the street toward their apartment after dinner when Sam surprised Andy by pulling her into a hug and nuzzling his face into her neck. "I'm pretty sure we're being followed," he mumbled into her ear.

She turned them around so she could see what Sam saw. "Tall guy, jeans, black shirt, pretending to pull a newspaper out of the bin?"

"Mmmhmm." He placed kisses along her neck and jaw as he turned them around. "Noticed him two blocks ago."

Andy giggled like a girl who was lovesick as part of the charade they were putting on for whoever this guy was that was following them. It had been so long since Sam held her like this and she wanted to get lost in it, but knew they were just playing their parts. That none of it was real. However, Sam was a little too good at his acting and she needed him to stop what he was doing to her neck because, yeah, it was making it hard for her to think straight. "Sa- Matt, stop that. I can't -"

"Take out your phone to snap a photo of us. See if we can get him in the background," he said, mumbling the words into her neck.

Trying to pull herself together, she aimed the camera on the phone at her and Sam, but intentionally moved it right before snapping the photo so she had a better chance of capturing the mystery man. "Sooooo cute," she said loud and sweetly as she looked down at the pic. "Got him," she whispered in Sam's ear.

"Let's go," he said, the arm around her waist tightening protectively. Andy just smiled. She didn't care what the reason was, she enjoyed having his arm around her and tucked herself into his side for the rest of the walk home.

They continued the few blocks to their apartment, casually stopping to makeout a few times so they could see if the mystery man was still following, which he was. When they arrived, Sam checked things out and made sure the cameras had been on in case someone made an uninvited visit. "We've gotta call Callaghan," Sam said, pulling out his phone. He dialed the number and put it on speakerphone before setting it on the coffee table in front of where he and Andy were sitting.

"What's up?" Luke asked.

"We were followed tonight."

"Lay it out for me."

"Andy and I went out for dinner, kept to our covers. Didn't notice anything unusual until we were walking home. Then I saw this guy, tall, brown hair, kind of skinny, wearing jeans and a black shirt," Sam explained.

"We got a photo of him. It's dark and far away, but maybe you can do something with it. I'll send it to you now," Andy interjected. She punched a few buttons on her phone to send the photo to Luke.

"Okay, I'll see if I can get a name. Any guesses on who it was?" Luke asked.

"Terry probably sent someone to check us out," Andy said. "He seems to be a pretty careful guy."

"I wouldn't put it past him to do some extra research into who we are," Sam added.

"Yeah. Look, I'll try to get an ID on the guy who followed you and keep you posted," Luke said. "Call if you get anything new."

The three said their goodbyes and Sam ended the call.

"Should we do anything?" she asked, looking over at Sam.

"Nothing we can do. We can't let on to Terry we know we were followed, unless it turns out it wasn't one of his goons. But my bet is he's just checking up on us." Sam shifted on the couch, making sure to keep his distance from Andy. The fire he felt through his body when he touched her before was too much for him to handle more of right now. "And look, about before, I'm sorry if I took it too far. I...I was just trying to keep our cover."

"It's okay. You didn't," she said, shaking her head. She thought back to his hands all over her and his lips on her neck. "I...it just caught me off guard a bit."

"Well, we should probably get some sleep," he said standing.

Andy stood up, but neither moved as they stared at each other. "Maybe...Maybe you could share the bed tonight. You know, get a good night's sleep instead of on this horribly uncomfortable couch," she said, gesturing to it.

"You sure?"

"We've been living together for more than a week. It can't possibly get more awkward than it is already, right? The bed's plenty big enough," she said quietly.

Sam thought about it for a moment. It was probably a horrible idea, given what happened outside and all the baggage they had as Sam and Andy. But if he was going to be successful as Matt, being well rested would help. "Okay."

They silently changed and got ready for bed; a cloud of anxiousness felt in the air by both. Andy was already lying in bed when Sam climbed in after making sure everything was locked up.

It really was a large bed. And with both lying on their sides, there was a canon of cold bed sheet in between them. She locked eyes with him as she scooted closer to the center of the bed, watching him do the same thing a moment later. They quietly, and slowly, closed the distance an inch at a time as their eyes stayed glued to each other. She could feel her heart beating faster and Sam felt her minty fresh breath hit his skin in quickened breaths. He tilted his head and closed the distance between them until his lips met hers softly. It was light at first, each testing how the other would react, waiting for the other to pull away. But neither did.

Andy pressed her lips against his harder as they deepened the kiss and her hand came to rest against his chest. No longer able to fight the urge, Sam's hand came up to the back of her head, his fingers tangling in her hair as he cupped the back of her head to bring her impossibly closer.

Sam rolled her onto her back as he hovered over her, their lips breaking apart for the first time in several minutes. They breathed heavily as their eyes met again and silently questioned whether they should be doing this. Not only were they on the job, but they had so much to talk about before anything between them could be fixed. Yet, neither made a move to stop what was happening.

"You okay?" Sam asked, his voice unsteady.

Andy worried her bottom lip for a moment before responding. "I think we should pick up where we left off outside," she said, a coy smile forming on her lips.

"That so?" And after a beat, "Where was that?"

She ran her fingers down his jaw, mirroring where his lips had been on her. "You had your lips here," she said, kissing his jaw where her fingers had just been. Her lips than followed her fingers to his neck. "And here." She nipped at his earlobe as she felt his hand travel down her side and grip her hip. "And here."

"How about here?" He asked before crushing his lips against hers. A moan escaped her mouth, but was lost in his as they began to lose their clothes.

* * *

The ringing of a distant phone woke Andy out of the first restful sleep she'd had in weeks, maybe months. Curled up with Sam, his arm draped across her body, she smiled before remembering what woke her up. She poked Sam in the side with her bony fingers. "Sam...Sam...Wake up."

"Hmmm?"

"Wake up," she repeated, poking him again.

"Ouch," he mumbled into the pillow.

"Your phone. It's ringing."

He mumbled something unintelligible and rolled off the bed, giving Andy the satisfaction of seeing his naked body walk off to find his phone. When he was gone, she closed her eyes and smiled. She laughed as she heard Sam mutter curses from the other room, having obviously missed the call. Seconds later she heard the ringing of a phone again, but realized it was much closer. Rolling over, she realized it was her phone and reached over to grab it off the bedside table.

"Hello?"

"It's Luke."

She looked over at the clock and it took her a few minutes to focus and realize it said 6am. "Why are you calling so early?"

"Oh, didn't realize the time. I've been up for hours."

She rolled her eyes and mouthed 'Luke' to Sam when he walked back in the room. He tossed his cell phone on the dresser and began searching the floor for his clothes that had been tossed aside during the night.

"So, Luke, why are you calling?"

"Oh right. We ID'd the guy who followed you. It was Frankie Sanson, one of Terry's goons. Looks like nothing to worry about, but keep an eye out," he said.

Andy furrowed her eyebrows watching Sam put on his boxers and pajama bottoms before pulling the shirt he wore to bed over his head. He refused to look at her the whole time and the happy feeling she woke up with quickly vanished.

"Did you get all that? Andy?"

"Um, yeah, got it." Those words seem to get Sam's attention as he turned to look at her, but remained standing at least a foot away from the bed with his hands on his hips. "Be extra careful, but it seems like Terry was just checking into us, which is what I said last night. This couldn't wait until later?"

"Thought you'd want to know right away," Luke replied.

"Well, if we were in any real danger. But it's what we expected Luke."

"Alright, well, I'll let you get back to sleep or whatever," he said. "Oh, and tell Swarek to answer his damn phone next time."

"Uh huh, okay," she replied.

She tossed her phone back on the table, not taking her eyes off Sam. "He was updating us on the guy who followed us," she explained.

"Yeah, got that," he said, walking toward the door. "Gonna go make coffee."

"Sam, wait." She sat up, pulling the sheets around her. "What..."

"We shouldn't have...it was a mistake," he said.

She blinked her eyes a few times trying to convince herself she heard him wrong. "A mistake?" she asked, the words just barely a whisper.

"We need to focus on the job." He walked out of the room without another word.

Andy scrambled to throw on her pajamas, smoothing her shirt down as she walked out of the bedroom. She found Sam leaning against the counter, palms splayed across the linoleum as his head was bent down as he contemplated what happened with Andy and what he'd just said to her. He didn't want it to be a mistake, but they couldn't do this. Not now.

"Is that how you really feel?" Her question made him jump, the usual sixth sense he had to know when she was near failing him this morning.

Of course that wasn't how he really felt, but they needed to focus on their assignment. They needed to keep personal emotions aside to stay alive and succeed with their mission. But his hesitation was all Andy needed. "I didn't think so," she said. "Don't do this again. Don't shut down on me."

"Andy..." He sighed as he turned around.

"What Sam? What? I slept the best I have in months last night because of what we shared. Don't tell me it wasn't the same for you. Don't toss it aside as a mistake when you know it wasn't."

"Andy, we can't."

She knew she was pushing her luck and this had the chance of backfiring, but she had to at least try. She stepped into his personal space, not backing down. "Why?"

He closed his eyes and shook his head. He didn't want to fight, but sleeping together with all the baggage they carried was a bad idea. "I...I don't know." Andy waited, silently and patiently for him to work through everything in his head like she knew he was doing. "The sex was _never_ the problem with us, Andy. It was the rest we had trouble with. That we still have trouble with."

"I know. I know. But...Look, before we went under you promised to do everything so there could be an us again. Let me make the same promise. Let's promise to _really _fix this once we get back. Do everything right this time. Go out to dinner, have double dates with our friends, make breakfast together, _talk_, listen. Really talk, about everything. Do it right." The words tumbled out of her mouth fast as she pleaded with him. Pleaded as much, or more, than when he begged her to give him a second chance. This was an opportunity for them to give each other a second chance. "But maybe...maybe not _everything_ has to wait until we get back." She knew they had a lot to work through when they were back to being just Sam and Andy, but why torture themselves right now? Why fight the feelings they still had for each other? And it wasn't just because the sex was heavenly. He made her feel safe. He made her feel like she had something to go back to when they returned to their normal lives. It gave her hope.

He framed her face in his hands and slowly brought his lips to hers. When they parted, he nudged her nose with his. "You're right. Best night's sleep in a while," he said, which caused Andy to smile.

She wrapped her arms around his waist. "Sam, please...We can't possibly make things worse." Probably not her best argument, but she didn't want to go the next however many months trying to act only as friends inside the apartment, especially when they had to put on a big show of being lovers out in public.

He closed his eyes; would've pinched the bridge of his nose if he could've pulled his hands away from her face, but it was like they were stuck there. He felt her hands creep under his shirt, her fingers gently massaging small circles into the muscles of his lower back. When he opened his eyes again, he saw her looking up at him expectantly, like she knew he would cave. "Let's not rush anything, okay?" He didn't want to jump head first into this again and come out of this undercover feeling like an old married couple, having skipped all the normal new relationship steps again.

"Yeah. We'll take it slow," she said, grinning. "Now, uh, you gonna make me breakfast or do I have to do it myself?"

"You make breakfast and we'll be welcoming the fire department in to blow our covers," he teased, earning a sharp pinch of her fingers on his waist.

* * *

A couple of weeks went by and things felt easier between Andy and Sam. He was no longer sleeping on the couch and they weren't tiptoeing around each other, but they weren't outright talking about their past either. They knew they had to keep their minds on the job and there'd be plenty of time for talking about _them_ later. But the relationship Andy and Sam had rekindled was helping their covers. They found it easier to show affection in public, whether it was their fingers linked together as they held hands or kissing. Neither was scared of pushing the other too far as Matt & Ally now that they'd been intimate as Sam & Andy again.

They spent time in training with the legit side of Terry's operation. They had to learn the rules and regulations of the adoptions, and they sat in on a few to get a feel for how they went. Terry checked in on them a couple of times himself, but Andy and Sam knew there were others inside the company watching them on a daily basis.

Their latest assignment had them working with Mary, a woman they'd done a lot of their training with, on an adoption. A single mother was giving up her newborn baby to a loving couple from just outside of Toronto. Sam & Andy were tasked with picking up the baby and bring her to the meeting, where the new parents would sign the paperwork. They pulled up outside the office where the exchange would take place and Andy took the baby out of her car seat, smiling as the precious little girl in her arms cooed and wrapped tiny fingers around her hair.

Sam's heart thudded in his chest when he saw Andy with the baby. He'd never been one to dream of having kids; always enjoyed being unattached Uncle Sammy. He was having a hard time trying to understand how his heart was reacting to the scene in front of him. Images of a baby with Andy's beautiful brown eyes and his dimples were flashing through his head.

"Matt?" Sam's eyes met Andy's and the look on her face told him that wasn't the first time she'd called his name.

"Uh, yeah?" He was having trouble getting words out as he tried to analyze the thoughts running rampant about him and Andy and babies.

"You gonna get the car seat?" she asked, nodding toward the car.

"Oh yeah, yeah."

When they reached the office, they met Mary and the couple who was adopting the baby girl. They all shook hands and Andy kept holding the baby, knowing they weren't allowed to hand the baby over until the paperwork had been signed. So, she stood off to the side with Sam until she realized they'd lost the small stuffed bear the baby had been clutching the entire car ride. She didn't see it on the floor nearby, so she nudged Sam with her elbow and motioned for him to take the baby. He took the little girl, but gave Andy a curious look until she mouthed 'be right back.'

She retraced their steps and ended up finding the stuffed animal on the floor of the backseat. She grabbed it, smoothing out the ears as she walked back in the building. When she returned to where everyone was gathered, Andy paused in the doorway when she saw Sam gently bouncing the baby who rested on his shoulder. Andy's ovaries wanted to explode at the sight. She wanted to drag Sam into the nearest empty room and start making babies with him.

She was floored by the feelings, as she'd always been scared about having kids someday. She wanted them, but was terrified she'd be a horrible mom, that she'd follow in the footsteps of her own. She slowly walked into the room, placing a hand on Sam's back as she waved the stuffed animal in front of the baby. The little girl smiled at the bear but her little fingers stayed clutching Sam's shirt.

Andy caressed the baby's head which had her cocooning her face in Sam's neck. She watched as Sam slid a hand up and down the baby's back and soon enough a small snore escaped her mouth, causing Andy to smile. When it was time, she helped Sam put the sleeping baby girl into her carrier and handed her over to the happy couple.

Mary walked the couple out, leaving Sam and Andy alone. "You were good with her," Andy said.

"You too."

Still feeling something deep down inside her from seeing Sam with a baby, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed a kiss to his lips. "Ever thought about having kids?" she asked.

"Uh, honestly…not before," he admitted, not wanting to fully come clean about the recent images invading his head of him and Andy and a baby. She knew there was more to what he was thinking, but let it go.

"Me neither. But, this...oddly enough, I don't know..." She wasn't ready to admit to him she wanted to have _his _babies, given all their baggage they had yet to work through.

"You'll be a great mom someday," he told her, taking her hand in his as they left the office.


	5. Chapter 5

I had hoped to get this out sooner, but life got in the way a bit. But here it is, the next chapter. Hope you're enjoying the progress we see Sam and Andy making at their relationship. Please keep reviewing, I love hearing what everything thinks! :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Rookie Blue.

* * *

**Chapter 5 **

It wasn't long before Terry had enough confidence in Matt and Ally to bring them into the other areas of his operation. He'd had eyes on them since they began working for him, had them followed several times, and even investigated deeply into their life before moving to Toronto. He was pleased with what he saw, felt they'd be discreet and get the job done.

Sam and Andy quickly learned how the child trafficking arm of Terry's operation worked. He had connections throughout the world providing him children - some kidnapped, some runaways, some tricked into thinking they were being brought to a better life. Terry would pay for the children based on where they were from and their condition, and then would re-sell them to anyone who made a reasonable offer, although he had many regular customers. The locations of the pickups and exchanges varied, as Terry didn't want to alert suspicion in any given area.

Tonight, Sam and Andy sat in a small building at the marina waiting for the boat with their shipment to arrive. It was a small shipment of two girls, Andy had been told. She wasn't given their exact ages, but knew they were teenagers. They were runaways, told they could get into modeling. Unfortunately, the girls were too trusting, believing the story they were given until it was too late.

And now Benny, Rob, Sam and Andy waited for the boat to dock. Andy began fidgeting with her fingers when she noticed Rob kept staring at her, something he'd done a lot since the very first night they met. She'd already shot him down on more than one occasion, but he continued to stare at her like he was undressing her with his eyes. She tried to ignore him and focus on the job. And she knew if she said anything it would only rile Sam up, which was a complication they didn't need right now.

She recapped in her mind what her instructions had been. Once the guys completed their transactions, the two girls would be handed over. She was responsible for keeping them calm during this process and while they were transported in the van to the house, where Terry's customer would be waiting. She was to keep them in line throughout the whole process, so Terry's customer would be pleased and follow through with the purchase. It seemed simple enough, but she knew it could be anything but simple. The girls could put up a fight or act out, in which case they'd be punished. The whole thing was punishment enough, so Andy always had extra incentive to keep the girls calm and save them from any additional torture.

Sam was on the phone, getting updates on the boat they were waiting for when Rob moved from his spot across the room to sit directly in front of her. "So, sweetheart, got any plans after this?" he asked, keeping his voice low. He knew she was seeing Matt, but decided to take his chances because he really wanted a piece of her.

Andy didn't want to make enemies, especially with someone so high up in Terry's operation, and really didn't want Sam catching on to what was happening, so she looked pointedly at her watch before responding. "Sleep," she stated simply. She thought about wearing a frumpy sweatshirt next time she was in his company because she felt like he was seeing right through her tank top as he ogled her.

"I could show you something a lot more fun than sleeping," he said suggestively.

Andy knew Sam was off the phone and didn't have to look at him to know he was gritting his teeth, clenching his fists and trying not to punch the guy. She had to end this conversation. She tried to laugh his question off. "Sorry, looking forward to my sweatpants, my bed and my honey," she said, throwing a smile at Sam in hopes it would both cool him down and force Rob to get a clue.

"C'mon sweetheart, we can celebrate the job."

"She said no," Sam said sternly. He stood, just barely stopping himself from walking over and punching Rob before leaning his shoulder against the wall.

"We all know you've already had a piece. It's only fair to share buddy," Rob responded.

Andy was out of her chair a split second after seeing Sam push himself away from the wall. With her back to Rob, she faced Sam, pleading with her eyes and laying a gentle hand on his chest. She couldn't let him do anything to risk getting hurt or to jeopardize their cover. She breathed a sigh of relief when Benny interrupted what was going on.

"Boat's here. Let's get to work," he said, walking toward the door.

Rob gave Sam a look that said 'this wasn't over' before following Benny out the door.

"I won't let him touch you," Sam whispered, as he put a hand on Andy's lower back to guide her out the door.

"I can handle him," she said.

"_I _will handle it," he said. And that was the last word on the matter as Benny introduced Matt and Ally to the delivery guy.

* * *

The next night, everyone was hanging out at Clover's Bar; all in good spirits due to all the recent successful transactions. Sam and Andy were hoping some drunken admissions might take place that could help them.

A couple of hours into the night, Andy was walking back to her seat when she felt a hand grab her ass. She slapped the hand away as she turned around to, not surprisingly, see the hand attached to Rob. Before she could even get words out of her mouth, Rob was being pulled out of his chair and thrown against a nearby wall. Sam's arm was pushed up against Rob's throat, while his other hand gripped the guy's arm like a vise. "I warned you," Sam hissed out.

Andy was too shocked to do anything, but watch as Benny jumped up and put a hand on Sam's shoulder. "Back off," Sam barked.

Glaring at Rob as he struggled to breath, Sam spoke slowly so what he said was clear. "Do. Not. Touch. Her."

Rob held up his free hand in surrender and Sam removed his arm from the guy's throat, but kept his hand on his arm. "Get the hell off me!" he yelled, struggling against Sam.

"I think you owe the lady an apology," Sam said, releasing Rob's arm and stepping back. When Rob hesitated to respond, Sam gritted his teeth and raised his eyebrows.

"Whatever, sorry," Rob said, before stomping off toward the exit.

"Okay then, let's get the party started again," Benny said, trying to lighten the mood. It seemed to work as everyone got back to what they were doing before the incident. Everyone except Sam and Andy.

Andy grabbed her beer and sat on a stool near the group as Sam walked up and stood next to her. "What was that?" she demanded.

"What was what?" he asked.

"That! Whatever just happened."

"He touched you."

"I don't need you to protect me. It could've blown our - It could have blown everything." She took a swig of beer when saw Suzy staring at them.

"He had his hand on your - "

"On my ass. Yes. And I could've dealt with him just fine if you hadn't thrown him against the wall." She slid off the stool and shoved her beer into Sam's hand. "Here, you can finish this. I'm going home. I need some space." Andy knew they risked blowing their cover if they got into an argument here in front of everyone.

"Ally, wait," Sam called out as she headed toward the door.

"Later Matt," she tossed the words over her shoulder as she left the bar.

Frustrated, Sam slumped down into a chair next to Benny and tried to engage himself in the conversation.

Benny slapped a hand on Sam's back. "C'mon buddy, let's get you a stronger drink." Sam struggled with whether to run after Andy or stay. When Benny placed a shot in front of him, he knew it was better for the undercover operation to stick around to see if he could learn anything to help them. And, well, personally, he figured he and Andy could use a little space right about now.

Outside, Andy hopped in a cab to take her back to the cover apartment.

* * *

It was several hours later when Sam returned to their apartment. Closing the door and locking it, he found Andy putting dishes away in the kitchen.

"Hey," he said quietly as he walked further into the room

"Hey," she replied, turning around.

"Andy, look, I'm sorry. But he had his hands on you," he started, his voice pleading with her.

"I know," she said, walking to the couch and sitting down. "But you can't always be my TO. I don't need protecting when it comes to sleaze balls like Rob. I'm a cop, I can handle myself."

"Ally's not a cop."

"And neither is Matt."

Points made, they simply stared at each other, waiting for the other to concede.

Sam broke the silence. "I can't promise I won't do it again if I see his hands on you."

"Sam."

"No, Andy, listen. I'm not gonna let some guy have his hands all over you."

"Sam, he simply grabbed my ass. Are you...are you _jealous_ of the creep?" Andy's eyes went wide at the realization that _that_ was why he was so pissed. She watched him, his eyes staring a hole in the floor as he bit the inside of his cheek. "Jesus, Sam, if you'd been a second slower, you would have seen me twist his hand behind his back, ready to break his fingers unless he begged for mercy." Sam quirked his eyebrows, but Andy simply smiled and shrugged. "What? Ally took a self-defense course."

Sam sat down next to her on the couch. "You have to let me do my job," she said. When he remained quiet, Andy took another approach. "Terry's known Rob a lot longer than you. What if you do something and Terry fires you? You'd be leaving me. Or putting us _both_ in danger."

Fear washed over his face. He couldn't let that happen. He needed to be here so he could have her back on this operation. He couldn't watch from the sidelines. And he couldn't leave her _again_ - thoughts of her searching storage lockers _alone_ and pushing her away after Jerry died danced around his head. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Fine. I'll go find a punching bag anytime I want to punch his lights out." He gave her his 'are you satisfied?' look and she smiled.

She scooted closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder as her lips started to curve into a smile. "Macho you is pretty hot, you know."

He gently nudged her chin until she was looking up at him, and pressed his lips to hers. Lips fused together, he shifted them so she was lying on the couch beneath him. He slid his hands to her ass, squeezing gently before pulling his lips from hers. "Not gonna break my fingers are you?" he teased.

Andy snorted. "Might let it slide this time," she said, smirking.

* * *

They woke up the next morning to Sam's cell phone ringing. Eyes closed, he fumbled with the phone before finally answering the call. "Yeah?"

"Matt, it's Terry. We need to talk."

Sam's eyes shot open at the sound of the voice on the phone. _Shit_, he silently cursed. Maybe he _had_ screwed up last night. "Sure boss. Another job?" he asked, hopeful.

"No, gotta talk about last night. Rob. You. Everything okay there?"

Sam rubbed a hand over his face, which had Andy furrowing her eyebrows in concern as she laid on her side watching him. "Sorry about that, boss. I was stupid. It won't happen again."

"Good to hear that," Terry replied. "Look, I get it. I've wanted to punch him myself a few times. But try to keep a handle on it. I don't want two of my best men at odds."

"Sure thing. Again, sorry about what happened." Sam hung up, tossing his phone on the night table as he got out of bed.

"Was that about Rob?" Andy asked, taking a guess based on the side of the conversation she heard and Sam's facial expressions.

"Yeah," he said, walking out of the room and heading for the kitchen.

Andy flung the covers off the bed, nearly stumbling over her own feet as she followed his steps quickly. She waited for him to speak first, leaning against the kitchen table as she crossed her arms to ward off the chill of the apartment. When he didn't, she huffed out a breath. "Sam, don't you see, _this_ is why you can't just go around picking a fight with anyone who hits on me! You're going to blow our cover."

"You're not gonna get me to stop protecting you, especially when some sleaze ball has his hands all over you. End of story," Sam said, slamming a kitchen cabinet closed after getting a mug.

"We've been through this! I can take care of myself." If she took care of herself, there was no one to rely on...no one to hurt her when they eventually left. Because they always did.

"Cause you've done such a great job of that," he muttered. He angrily threw coffee into the coffee maker and turned it on.

"Seriously, you're going to go there Sam? I can't...I can't believe you." She stood up straight, staring him down, even though his back was toward her. "I am a good cop. No, a_ great_ cop. Yes, I've gotten myself into some sticky situations, but so have Chris and Dov and Traci and Gail. Oliver. Even you. I don't need you acting as my TO all the time and protecting me. I'm fine on my own."

"You're so damn stubborn, you know that? It's not about me being a TO." Sam pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration before turning to face her. "I love you, okay! You're never gonna get me to stop protecting you." Even when he tried denying how much he loved her after Jerry died, his instincts had been to protect her. He couldn't stop even if he tried.

Andy shook her head hearing him utter those words again. "You have the worst timing, you know that."

"And your's came at the most opportune time?" he threw back at her. The moment the question left his mouth he regretted it, but his defenses had gone on high alert the moment he blurted those words out. The last time he'd told her, she'd run.

Andy worried her bottom lip, tried to prevent the tears fighting to break loose. She was overwhelmed with emotion swirling around her head, frustrated that he thought she needed protecting and stunned hearing those three words out of his mouth again. She didn't know what to do, what to say; she felt like she was drowning.

Sam let out a breath, listened as the coffee started percolating, counted several drips before he finally walked over to her. "Look, it doesn't matter when we said it, how we said it, as long as we mean it," he said softly. "I do, I mean it. I love you, Andy. I hope...I hope you still feel the same." He hadn't planned on those words coming out, but they did. And he meant them, he did, just wished he could tell her when she wasn't in danger or they weren't fighting. But the words just didn't come easily for him.

"I do," she said softly. "Never stopped loving you."

He wrapped her up in his arms, pinning hers against his chest. She tried to push away, but he was stronger and kept her against him.

"You can't...you can't do this. You can't say all this," she said, struggling against him, but he just held on tighter. "Not now."

"You gonna tell me again it's not my job to care about you? Cause you're right...it's not_ my job_. I do it because of how I feel about you, not out of some obligation."

"Sam..." She sighed and went lax in his arms.

"I know we have a lot to work through, but it's not gonna change how I feel."

She wondered how a conversation about him attacking a guy who grabbed her ass, and their boss calling him on it, turned into this, these proclamations of love. But, apparently they were doing this now, talking. "I didn't mean it...when I said it wasn't your job anymore," she said, thinking about the first time she uttered the words when she'd found him waiting outside the locker room for her. "You had broken my heart though...I felt like I couldn't risk letting you back in. I love you, Sam, god knows I do, but it's gonna take time."

"I know." He leaned in and nudged her nose with his. "I know. Just accept that I do. And I'm going to prove it to you fully once we're done with this."

"You don't have to. I know, okay. I do. Knew it before...before everything. But...you promised to stay, to fight...and you didn't." A lone tear escaped her eye and trickled down her cheek. Sam wiped it away with a thumb and let his hand linger on her cheek. He could tell she wasn't finished, so he stayed quiet. She swallowed the lump in her throat before continuing. "It hurt, tore my heart apart."

"You weren't the only one hurt. I may have pushed you away after Jerry, but you...your actions before that hurt too," he admitted, finding a calmer way to express the thoughts he nearly yelled at her back when they first started this undercover assignment.

"I know, I know. I never meant to hurt you," she said, shaking her head. "I wanted to be there for you after Brennan. I wanted to let you in more about my mom. I wanted...I wanted us to be normal. But, we were so screwed up when we started this. You were right when you said it was trouble from the start."

"No, no I wasn't." He took a deep breath trying to sort out his thoughts. "But maybe we shouldn't've have stayed partners at work. It was just a lot is all, spending _all_ our time together. I ended up pushing you away at home instead of creating that distance at work."

"So, you meant what you said. You can't be a cop and be with me," she said, tensing up and pulling away from his hand still resting against her face.

"No." He sighed, frustrated with himself. "I meant what I said about wishing you were in my head," he said, pushing out a nervous chuckle. He dropped his arms, letting her take two steps away from him. "I wish I could express myself better."

"What you said was pretty clear," she whispered.

"Not how I meant it. If we're partnered for a 10-hour shift, it's just...I'm gonna end up taking it home with me, with us," he explained. "Weren't you surprised when Frank allowed us to stay partnered up after our suspensions?"

"Yeah."

"Were you ready to be partnered with someone else then?"

She shrugged her shoulders, not really sure where he was going with this. "I guess."

"Look, I'm not saying we _never_ work together, but maybe it would help if we weren't _always_ partnered up. And we're going to get new rookies at some point, so you're bound to be a TO responsible for your own rookie sooner than later," he said.

Andy chuckled at the thought of having her own rookie to do her paperwork. "I hate the thought, but...you have a good point."

"Glad you agree," he smirked. "Point is, I don't care if you became the damn police superintendent, I'm always going to want to protect you...but maybe it'll feel less stifling if we're not always working together."

Andy let out a small sigh, but knew he was right, so she let her lips curve into a smile as she nodded. She walked back over to him, bumping her shoulder lightly against his. "Promise me something?" she asked.

"Shoot."

"Can we never fight _before_ coffee again?" she asked, closing her eyes as she inhaled the aroma now filling the apartment.

He chuckled as he filled the mug he'd put on the counter and handed it over to her. "See if I can arrange that," he replied, reaching into the cabinet for another mug.


	6. Chapter 6

Tried getting this up earlier today but ff was giving me issues!

So glad people are liking the little bits of talking Andy & Sam are doing as they fix their relationship. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. :) Thanks for all the wonderful reviews, please keep them coming!

Disclaimer: I don't own Rookie Blue.

* * *

**Chapter 6 **

Sam and Andy were on another job, paired up with Benny and Carlos, as Terry did his best to keep Sam and Rob away from each other. They were in the basement of a club Terry's friend Owen owned. The base from the speakers was thumping through the ceiling and Andy imagined how the hundreds of people dancing and drinking the night away had no clue what was happening down here.

It was one large room with a few tables scattered about and a small bar on one side. Andy imagined it had once been used for private parties, but now simply acted as a meeting place for Owen. A thick layer of dust covered most surfaces and from what she could see of a dimly lit hallway, a few light bulbs could use replacing.

They stood there waiting for Owen to arrive so they could finish the sale of the three young sisters they brought with them. Andy had barely been able to keep the girls calm on the hour drive from where they had to pick them up. Now the three of them were huddled together in a corner, munching on the French fries that were still left from the takeout Andy insisted they stop and get. She felt horrible that she was helping to sell children like this. Their life before hadn't been great from what she'd been told - they lived with a drunken, abusive step-father - but this new life for them wasn't going to be any better. She just hoped the information she and Sam passed along to the taskforce would help them keep track of the girls for a rescue later on.

She glanced over at Sam, who was looking toward the floor with his hands stuffed in his pockets. He hadn't been acting like himself all night, but she couldn't put her finger on what the problem was. She planned an interrogation when they got back to the apartment until he spilled what was bothering him. She didn't know if it was about them or the undercover, but she had to get him to open up.

Soon enough Terry's good friend Owen, along with four of his goons, walked into the room. Andy watched the children back into the corner even further, so she walked over to them, putting a hand on the shoulder of the oldest as she crouched down. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "This nice man is going to be taking care of you from now on." She hated lying and making it sound okay, but she had to do whatever necessary to keep them calm and unhurt - at least for now.

The oldest girl looked over Andy's shoulder and straight into the eyes of Sam. He wasn't sure why, he'd been standing motionless for several minutes as Benny spoke to Owen. But it triggered something in him. He mumbled something under his breath before nearly running down a hallway to where he knew the restrooms were.

Andy had followed the little girl's gaze and immediately saw him flee the room. She cast a worried glance at his retreating form before standing up and walking over to Benny. "You got everything for a minute?" she asked.

Benny nodded. "Yeah, we got it covered."

Sam burst through the door of the restroom and leaned on the sink, staring into the grimy, fingerprint-laden mirror in front of him. This was harder than he thought it would be. He was used to trading guns and drugs undercover, but not little girls. It made him sick and when that girl with long black hair and brown eyes stared right at him, he almost lost it. Still staring in the mirror, he saw the bathroom door open behind him and allowed himself to close his eyes briefly when he saw Andy walk in.

"Sam..." she whispered.

He stood up straight and walked toward her. "I'm fine. Let's get back out there." He tried to move past her, but she pushed back. She raised her eyebrows, giving him a look that told him he wasn't getting away with telling her he was 'fine.'

"What's wrong?" she asked, a hand resting against his chest.

"That girl...she can't be more than 13 or 14. She..." He took a deep breath that he hoped would steady his emotions. "She reminds me of Sarah. She looks like she did when...you know, at that age."

Andy realized why tonight had been harder than any of the other shipments. Sarah had been 13 when she'd been attacked and here was Sam handing over this look-alike to a similar fate.

"God damnit!" Sam turned away from Andy and punched the door of one of the stalls, which sent it flying into the wall before coming back at him and slamming shut.

"Sam, stop." Andy grabbed his fisted hand, her thumb rubbing over his knuckles to make sure he hadn't hurt himself.

"We should've had enough to shut them down by now. This is taking too long and each day more kids are being trafficked through," he said. His voice was quiet, but she could sense the frustration in his words.

"We can't give up. And we're keeping track of all the girls who have been trafficked already. We'll make sure they're rescued, if they haven't been already. You know there are people on the taskforce working on that," she whispered. She knew she had to calm Sam down before they could walk back out and join the others.

"Ever the optimist, huh?"

"You probably think I'm naive, but I have to believe we'll save the girls. Otherwise I'd never be able to keep our cover and transfer these girls. I'd want to save them on the spot," she replied.

He circled his arms around her and pulled her close. "It's not naivety. You have to be optimistic, otherwise you lose yourself, like I just did."

Andy tilted her head and smiled up at Sam. "I learned from the best."

He leaned down to kiss her and then rested his forehead against hers. "I just, I keep seeing Sarah when I look at that girl. And then she looked back at me with those sad eyes. I can't get it out of my head."

"I'm sorry." She laid her hands on his chest, her fingers playing with his shirt.

"I shouldn't have let it bother me."

"Use these feelings," she suggested.

Sam pulled back, eyes wide, wondering what she meant.

"Tell the guys she reminded you of your sister. Tell them she died tragically not that she was attacked. They'll think you're just going through grief seeing someone that looked like her and no one will be the wiser."

Sam narrowed his eyes at her and wondered when the roles had reversed and she became the teacher. "How'd you get so good at this?" he asked, smiling.

"Like I said, I was taught by the best. Now come on," she said, moving toward the door and tugging on his arm. "We have to get back out there."

By the time they got back, Owen's goons had taken the girls away and he was shaking hands with Benny. Sam gave a curt smile and a nod as Owen headed back upstairs to his office.

"Everything okay?" Benny asked as they approached.

"Yeah, I...the one reminded me of my sister. She died about the same age," Sam replied as he felt Andy's arm slide around his waist.

"Oh, shit man. I'm sorry."

"Same eyes and hair, was like looking at a ghost," Andy said, trying to back up his story as she could just feel him closing off.

"Wow...Well, we're all set here, so we can head out," Benny said.

The four of them made their way out the back exit they'd come in through. Andy slid into the backseat of the SUV with Sam and settled herself right up against him. His arm wrapped around her, holding her close, as he fought back the waterfall of tears that threatened to break through as he thought about what happened to his sister all those years ago. He couldn't help but wonder what she'd think about him sending other girls to a similar fate.

* * *

It was a couple weeks later when Sam and Andy were called to Terry's house to get their payment for a recent shipment they helped with and to discuss another upcoming transaction. Word was it was going to be a big one.

"This one is really important, so all hands on deck. We'll be doing it right at the warehouse and several of the buyers will be coming directly to us once the packages have been dropped off," Terry explained, after mentioning he would be overseeing this particular shipment firsthand.

"How many?" Sam asked.

"We have about 50 packages coming, give or take a couple that don't survive the trip." He talked so nonchalantly about girls dying that Andy had to dig her nails into her leg to stop herself from reacting. "Ally, we'll have you, hopefully Suzy, as well as Carol and Kimmy, to calm the girls. We hope that'll be enough," he continued.

Sam and Andy listened to the rest of the details and what their roles would be, both dreading the fact so many young girls were going to be trafficked in one transaction. It frustrated both of them that they hadn't been able to get enough concrete evidence to take Terry and his operation down yet.

Terry was walking them out when he had an idea. "Have you talked to Suzy lately?" he asked. Everyone knew the flu had knocked her down and she'd been home in bed for almost a week.

"Last night. She's so sick. I feel bad, wish I could help her," Andy replied. She felt Sam's arm around her shoulders. He knew her lion's heart always got her, no matter who the person.

"There might be a way you can help. She worried about getting behind on some of the administrative tasks I have her working on. Have you ever had any accounting experience?" he asked.

"I helped with the books of a bar I worked at for a couple years," she replied. She felt Sam discreetly squeeze her shoulder, warning her not to elaborate too much because she needed to be able to do the job Terry was about to task her with.

"That would work for what I need, especially just for a day or two." He seemed to ponder the idea for bit, as Andy tried not to show the fear and excitement ready to burst through. "Could you stick around for a couple hours today?"

"Absolutely. Anything I can do to help," Andy responded. "Let me just grab something from our car before Matt heads out."

Sam kept her close as they walked outside. "What are you doing? You shouldn't be alone with him," he whispered.

She plastered a smile on her face in case anyone was looking and spoke through gritted teeth. "I know what Suzy takes care of. This could be what we need to break the case wide open." She opened the passenger door and grabbed a sweater she left on the seat. "I'll be fine."

Sam sighed, but closed the door when she stepped aside. "Call me when you're done and I'll come pick you up." He was nervous to leave her alone in Terry's house, but knew she was right and had to do this.

She leaned in to place a chaste kiss on his lips. "I'll be fine. This could be just what we need," she whispered against his lips.

He gently grabbed her jaw, bringing her lips to his again briefly. "Be careful."

She made her way back inside the house where Terry was waiting for her. "Thanks for doing this Ally. I don't like to get behind, especially with the big shipment coming up next week. I want all my money accounted for," he said, escorted her into a small office across from his.

"Happy to help," she replied.

It took him about half an hour to go over everything and explain what she needed to do. Basically she just needed to record "inventories" - the children they trafficked - and the money paid and received for the "transactions." It was pretty simple stuff and she was glad for that.

"Alright, well, I have a phone call that should last a while, so I'll be in my office. I shouldn't be disturbed unless it's an emergency," he told her.

Andy nodded as he walked out. When she heard his office door close, she sat back in the chair, eyes wide at all the information she was now privy too. It was _all_ here. Everything about where the money came from, where it went, and every single child he'd ever kidnapped. She began rummaging through the desk drawers until she found a USB drive.

She'd copied several files over before deciding she needed to get some of the work Terry had given her done so he didn't get suspicious. Just because they had these files didn't mean her cover still couldn't be blown. She spent the next three hours alternating between entering the information he'd given her and copying more files over.

Andy was so involved in what she was doing, she jumped when there was a knock on the door. "Sorry, Ally, wanted to see how you were making out," Terry said, stepping into the room.

"Oh, good, yeah, just about through everything you gave me," she said.

"That's a big help. Thanks. Look, why don't you call it a day. I can give you a ride home," he offered.

"Matt said he'd pick me up. I guess I'll just give him a call." Andy forced herself not to glance down at the USB drive still in the computer. It was well out of Terry's sight, but she needed him to leave if she was going to grab it.

"Okay. Well, thanks for all the help." He gave her a quick nod before leaving and she heard him walk down the hallway.

She let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She dialed Sam's number and he picked up on the first ring. "Hey."

"Hey, can you pick me up?" she asked.

"I'll be there in 10," he replied.

Andy knew their apartment was a lot farther away and she shook her head smiling, knowing he'd stayed nearby in case she needed him. She shouldn't have expected any less. "Thanks."

"You know I wasn't going far," he said, as if reading her mind. Before she could respond, he'd already hung up. God forbid anything had gone wrong today, he would've been right there for her. She couldn't help but smile.

She pulled the USB drive out of the computer and held it up in front of her. This was the key to everything; to putting Terry behind bars; to getting her life back - to getting her life with Sam back. She smiled as she stuck it deep into her pocket. She straightened up the papers on the desk before shutting everything off and heading outside to wait for Sam.

* * *

Andy tried to keep the grin off her face as she slid into the passenger seat when Sam pulled up. "Everything go ok?" he asked.

"Mmhmm," was all she would say until they were a few blocks down the street. When she figured they were far enough away, she couldn't hold it in any longer. "I got it. Everything, Sam. The trail of money, the details of all the shipments. There are names and dates. This is it, Sam."

Sam's eyes kept bouncing from the road to Andy as she excitedly told him. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. They might be able to wrap this up soon and get back to their lives. "How?"

She pulled the USB drive out of her pocket. "I copied all the files."

He took it from her outstretched hand. "This is our key home. You know that, right?"

"I know you weren't keen on me being in the house alone with him, but it - "

"No, don't. Yeah, I didn't like the idea, but you were right to want to do this. Look at what it got us," he said, smiling proudly. He handed the USB drive back to her and she pushed it safely back in her pocket. "We'll have to do a drop. Call Callaghan and let him know."

The detective picked up on the second ring. "Ally, nice to hear from you."

"Hey Luke, we got a big break today. Gonna need to do a drop," she said.

"How big we talking?" Luke asked, shutting the door to his office so no one overheard.

"We've got all the files, trails of money, people, places. It's all here," she explained.

"That's fantastic. When can you drop it off?" he asked.

"We're on the way to the box now. Half an hour maybe?" She glanced over at Sam and saw him nod in agreement.

"Alright. I'm picking this one up personally. I'll be in touch."

Sam and Andy followed protocol for any intel they couldn't pass along over the phone. They were to place the item in a post office box and Luke would have someone on the taskforce pick it up. This time, he obviously decided the intel was too important for anyone to handle but himself.

* * *

Later that night, after the USB drive was dropped off and empty Chinese takeout containers littered the coffee table, Andy laid on top of Sam on the couch. After celebrating the breakthrough in the case, a light blanket from the back of the couch was the only thing covering them. Their legs were tangled and her head was nestled in the crook of his neck while his fingers danced along the warm skin of her back. Their hearts beat against each other, slowing from the pounding rhythm they'd been at several minutes earlier.

He tucked her hair behind her ear with his free hand, while she ran her thumb along his jaw. "Hey, I know you weren't real happy about leaving me alone with Terry," she said. He'd brushed the topic off in the car, but she wanted to make sure he knew something.

"I'm not sorry for wanting to keep you safe. I'll never - "

"Stop," she interrupted. "I'm trying to tell you...thank you. I know you didn't go far. I know you had my back. And...thanks."

"I always have my partner's back, McNally."

She lifted her head so she could look at him. "So, what did you do for all those hours anyway?"

"Sat in a coffee shop for a while, found a park to walk around when I realized pumping myself with more caffeine probably wasn't the best thing for my nerves," he replied, chuckling.

Andy responded with her megawatt grin. "You must've been bored out of your mind. It was a good four hours before I called."

"Think I was too anxious to be bored. Was thinking about every possible way things could go wrong. That we'd been made and it was somehow a trap," he admitted, wrapping his hand around her cheek.

"Didn't mean to make you worried," she replied, casting her eyes down. "I was confident we hadn't been made. That this was the universe dropping some luck our way."

"You did the right thing. Not gonna promise I wouldn't be nervous if the situation came up again though," he said.

"I know." She brushed her thumb over his lips before quickly pressing her own lips to his. She let her hand caress his face as she deepened the kiss. It was slow and languid, the opposite of the pace they'd set earlier as they tore each other's clothes off. They'd been in a rush to celebrate, but now Andy wanted to take it slow and Sam took his cues from her, matching her pace as his hands slowly moved across her body.

* * *

They woke up the next morning tangled up together in bed, having finally moved there sometime during the night. Andy was snuggled into Sam's warm body when she heard her phone ring. She groaned. Kissing her forehead, Sam detangled himself and got up to retrieve her phone from the other room, tossing it to her when he walked back in the bedroom.

"Hello," she answered groggily. Sam climbed back into bed and she settled back onto his chest.

"Can you talk?" Luke asked, wanting to make sure she was able to speak freely.

"Morning, Luke. Yeah I can talk. Sam's here too." She hit the speakerphone button and held it out so they could both hear the detective. Sam absentmindedly brushed the hair off of Andy's shoulder before his fingers began drawing patterns on her bare shoulder.

"The files you got us are huge. They're going to make the case for us," Luke said.

"Does that mean...?" Andy hoped this meant their undercover assignment could come to an end.

"Yeah. We just need an opportunity to strike," he asked.

"There's a big shipment next week. There are 50 girls coming in and this shipment is real important to Terry. He'll be there when it arrives," Sam responded.

"And he said a lot of his buyers will be there too," Andy added.

"Do we know time and place?" Luke asked.

"Wednesday night at the warehouse. Time isn't certain, but late, around midnight we're thinking," Sam said. "The girls are coming in on trucks."

"Okay, the taskforce will obviously take lead on this, but it's within 15 Division, so I'll call for some backup. You'll see some familiar faces at the takedown, but keep your covers until we have you back at the station," Luke said.

"How do we keep the girls safe during the takedown?" Andy asked.

"Oh, uh, I'll leave that up to you. Once I have all the plans for the takedown, you'll know what's best," he replied.

Andy looked up at Sam, worried that these innocent girls could get hurt in the crossfire. He gave her a reassuring look and squeezed her shoulder.

"Okay, so we'll be prepared for Wednesday night. Get me the time when you know for sure. And we'll surround the place and come in once the exchanges start to take place," Luke explained.

Andy was still annoyed Luke didn't have a plan for the girls. "Fine. We'll contact you when we know the time."

The trio exchanged goodbyes and Andy ended the call. "These girls are going to be in the middle of it all. How do we protect them?" she asked.

"We're going to have to go with our gut as it's happening. But they'll be okay. _We'll_ be okay."

As much as she wanted this assignment to be over and for Terry and his crew to be arrested, she was suddenly very anxious for the takedown. Takedowns were always dangerous for undercover cops. Not only was there enemy fire, but it was very easy for other officers to mistake them for the bad guys while chaos erupted. And now they had all these innocent girls added to the mix. It wasn't going to be easy.

Sam's thoughts matched hers, except his biggest concern was how to keep them both safe during the takedown.

"So, what do we do until Wednesday?" Andy asked.

"We continue as usual. Once Callaghan gets us the specifics for the takedown, we create our own plan," he explained.

"But today, we don't have anything planned, do we?" She looked up at him seductively.

"Nope." He rolled them over so she was underneath him. "Could continue celebrating a job almost done." His voice had gone husky and all Andy could muster was a nod of the head. She closed her eyes and tilted her head back as Sam began kissing and sucking along her neck.


	7. Chapter 7

We've come to the final chapter of this story. Thank you all for taking this little journey with me. Hope you enjoy how everything gets tied up in this chapter. Let me know what you think with a review! :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Rookie Blue.

* * *

**Chapter 7**

When Sam and Andy pulled up to the warehouse Wednesday night, they knew there wasn't much left for them to do but stay alive. They'd been briefed on the plans for the takedown and Andy finally convinced Luke to send in some additional officers solely to take care of the children. Sam and Andy were to try and get themselves away from the doors or the windows as that would keep them the safest, and they were prepared to be arrested with everyone else. Luke had warned everyone involved in the takedown that Sam and Andy's covers were to remain intact until they were brought back to the station.

"Ready for this?" he asked as he shut the car off.

Andy took a deep breath. "As I'll ever be," she replied, forcing a smile. But a beat later, "I'm terrified."

He turned slightly in his seat to face her. "Hey, we've been through a lot to get to this point. We can do this. _You_ can do this. I'll be right by your side. Okay?" When she only gave a meek node, he asked her again. "Okay?"

"Yeah. We can do this. You and me," she said more confidently.

"Then let's go do it," he said, an excited grin taking over his face that Andy couldn't help but laugh at. He really was like a kid in a candy story when it came to undercover work.

Benny and Suzy arrived as Sam and Andy were walking into the warehouse and they quickly joined everyone and got to work preparing for the exchange. The warehouse was wide open, a few tables and chairs scattered in one area the only furniture in the large room. Sam and Andy knew the place had already been wired with hidden cameras and microphones to prepare for the takedown. Terry indicated one side of the room which would be where they'd hold all of the girls until they were handed over to the various buyers.

It didn't take long for the two truckloads of girls to arrive and Andy's heart broke when she saw them. They were all obviously undernourished and could use a hot shower. They ranged in age from 8 to 17 years old. She helped one of them who was limping on what appeared to be a badly sprained or broken ankle. She sat her down against the wall near where the rest of the girls were standing; wished she could do more, but knew help was almost there for these girls.

As was part of the plan, Andy pretended she needed Sam's help controlling the girls. This way no one would question him sticking to her like glue. As they were getting the girls settled, Sam noticed several of the buyers filter in to start appraising their merchandise. Rob was making notes about which girls each buyer wanted. Sam had this sick feeling in the pit of his stomach at how people could treat young girls this way.

Money had just started exchanging hands when officers burst through the doors of the warehouse and chaos erupted. A few of Terry's men drew their guns and were able to fire off a few shots before they were tackled to the ground. Sam grabbed Andy's arm and pulled her into a crouching position with him when he heard the bullets fly.

When they stood up again, people were running all over the place - Terry's crew was trying to find an escape route, while the girls were looking for freedom. In the dozens of officers that now rushed around the building, Andy saw the familiar faces of Oliver and Chris first. They were across the large room and hadn't seen her yet, but she hoped it would be one of her friends that took her into custody.

Sam took it all in, his eyes watching everything going on, from the guys struggling as they were being arrested to the children weeping in the arms of law enforcement. He saw Suzy quietly get put into handcuffs – he knew deep down she knew what she was doing was wrong - and Benny put up a small fight against Nick. Out of the corner of his eye, he made sure Andy wasn't far from him.

Marlo, a new officer to 15 Division, saw Sam the moment she came through the door. She couldn't believe after all these years how good he still looked. She was determined to be the one to take him in and made a beeline directly for him, ignoring everything else going on around her. She frowned when another officer beat her to him, but she continued on her way, ready to take him off the other officer's hands. However, things didn't go according to plan for her.

When Andy saw Sam being cuffed, she stepped to the side as he was turned around and accidentally backed into someone. Before she could get out an apology, she found herself slammed up against the cement wall she'd been standing near. "Ow!" she screamed as Marlo pulled her arms behind her back. Throughout the whole incident, which happened pretty quickly, Marlo couldn't take her eyes off Sam, so she didn't realize who the woman she held was. When Andy squirmed in her hands, Marlo shoved her into the cement wall again. "What the hell!" Andy squealed.

"Hey! Watch it!" Sam yelled. It wasn't until Marlo saw concern in Sam's eyes as he stared at the woman that she really took a close look at who she was holding and realized it was the other undercover officer she'd seen photos of back at the station. "Shit," she mumbled under her breath.

She pulled Andy away from the wall and led her to a cruiser quickly, glancing back at Sam only briefly to see that he was being taken away by the other officer. Andy knew saying or doing anything right now could blow her cover, so she kept her mouth shut and fought back the urge to struggle against the officer just to be a pain in the ass. Sitting in the back of the cruiser, Andy looked in the rearview mirror only to see a bloody scrape on her forehead where her head had collided with the wall. She was going to have a nasty headache later.

Andy watched as the officer finally slid into the front seat and started the cruiser. "Sorry 'bout that. Didn't recognize you," Marlo said.

Andy snorted and wondered how an officer as stupid as this one worked at 15 Division now. As they drove to the station in silence, she also wondered if it was procedure for her and Sam to be separated or a result of the chaos and this officer's incompetence. All she knew was that she could really use one of Sam's reassuring glances right now.

By some miracle, Sam ended up in the back of Oliver's cruiser and was glad to see his friend's familiar face. "Been a while since I've seen your ugly mug reflecting back at me from the backseat," Oliver said, teasing his friend. They both thought back to the last time, when Andy busted Sam her first day on the job.

"Good to see you too, brother," Sam replied, his lips curving into a small smile.

They'd been driving a few minutes before Oliver spoke again. He knew his friend was thinking about his partner and wondered if they'd been able to work things out while they'd been gone. "You know she was going under?" Oliver asked.

Sam shook his head. "Nope."

"You guys, uh, doing better now?"

"Ollie…"

"Hey, I'm the one who got stuck cleaning all the garbage out of your truck because it started to smell after you went under. I think I deserve to hear if there's a happy ending." Oliver decided not to mention he took the truck for a spin one day too, just to remind himself what driving something other than a minivan was like.

"We're working things out," Sam finally said.

A smile broke out on Oliver's face as he thought about how being stuck alone together for months might've been the best thing that happened to his friend and former rookie. "Good to hear, brother. Just, talk to her this time. Don't screw it up."

"We are. We have. We're…We're trying to better understand each other. How are you and Zoe?" Sam asked, changing the subject.

"Better. I'm back home and we're going to therapy. Things are good," he replied.

"Good, I'm glad."

* * *

When Marlo got Andy into booking, several others arrested at the takedown were already there, so Andy knew she was going to need an excuse to be taken into an interrogation room immediately to avoid a holding cell and protect her cover. Trying to clamp down a smile, knowing she was going to enjoy this too much, she elbowed Marlo hard in the stomach. She heard the officer grunt and felt her double over slightly. Andy bit her bottom lip to stop herself from smiling.

"Bitch," Marlo spit out, as she roughly pulled on Andy's arm, not caring anymore that she was a fellow officer.

Apparently Luke, who'd just walked into the room, saw the exchange as it was his voice Andy heard next. "Get her into interrogation room one. Now."

Marlo all but dragged her down the hallway and into the interrogation room. All the while Andy had a smug smile on her face; she'd show her that 15 Division was _her_ home.

"What was that for?" Marlo demanded once they were behind the closed door of the interrogation room.

"What?" Andy asked, feigning innocence. She turned around so Marlo could remove her handcuffs. "Every undercover officer knows you have to get into a private room immediately and the arresting officer needs a reason to make that happen. I was just giving you that reason." Andy sat down casually in one of the chairs to wait for Luke to come in for her debrief. She sat back and crossed one leg over the other as she looked up at her arresting officer. "Nice to meet you, Officer..." She glanced at her nametag. "Cruz."

Marlo didn't like that Andy was right, that she had to make a scene out there, so she stomped out of the room, letting the door slam behind her.

* * *

When Andy finished her debrief, she walked out of the room and right into the arms of her best friend, who was squealing her name.

"Hey Trace," she said, hugging her friend back.

"Don't ever disappear like that again," Traci said, playfully slapping Andy's arm.

"Sorry, Trace. I missed you, and Leo."

"I missed you too. But sounds like things went really well for you…and Sam and the op," she said.

Andy let out a heavy breath. "Yeah, they did. For _us_ too."

"Really?" Traci asked, her eyes widening as she wanted to hear details.

Andy let out a giggle at her friend's excitement. "I promise, we'll have a girl's night and I'll tell you all about it. But right now, I just wanna check on Sam, go home and sleep for days."

"It's okay, I get it. I'll call you. How long are you off?" Traci asked.

"Couple of weeks." Andy leaned in to give her friend another hug. "I really did miss you."

"I'll line up a babysitter for Leo and we'll make a night of it this week, okay?" Traci suggested as they pulled apart.

Andy nodded. "That'd be great Trace."

After being nearly tackled by the rest of her friends and Oliver as they welcomed her back, Andy made her way into an observation room to watch Sam finish his debrief. She heard the door open about 10 minutes later and saw Marlo walk in. "Can I help you?" Andy asked, still annoyed with her.

"Just want to see how good old Sammy is doing," Marlo said, walking up to the window.

"You know Sam?" Andy was curious as to who this woman was and, better yet, how she knew Sam.

Marlo smiled big, as if she were recalling some happy memories, before answering. "Yeah, you could say that. We go way back."

Andy crossed her arms over her chest and pressed her lips together as she focused back on Sam. When he got up from his chair a short time later, Andy headed to the door so she could meet him in the hallway. Much to her dismay, Marlo followed close on her heels.

Sam smiled when he saw Andy. "Thought you might've left."

She shook her head and smiled. "Was waiting on you."

Walking around Andy, Marlo got right in front of Sam, bumping Andy's shoulder in the process. "So good to see you Sammy," she said before wrapping her arms around him in a hug.

Sam's eyes darted between the two women as his hand awkwardly patted Marlo on the back before she backed away. "Uh, yeah, you too. How, uh, how was SWAT?"

"Good. I needed a change," she replied, glancing over at Andy like she was the third wheel in this conversation. "You're probably exhausted. Need a ride home?"

"Nah, we're just gonna get a cab," he said, taking a step around Marlo to get closer to Andy so he could put his hand on her back.

"Oh, yeah, of course. I guess I'll see you when you're back on shift," Marlo said, sadness creeping through her voice.

"Yup. Have a good night Marlo," he replied.

"Nice to meet you, Officer Cruz," Andy said, smiling smugly as they walked away. This was _her_ home and _her_ man, and Marlo was going to have to step aside.

When they were standing outside waiting for a cab the officer at the front desk had called for them, Sam brought his hand to Andy's forehead, his thumb grazing over the cut and bruise already forming. "That hurt?" he asked.

She gave a small shrug of her shoulders. "Probably gonna have a horrible headache tomorrow."

"You get it checked out?"

"Yeah, Caroline and some new paramedic were at the station checking on someone in lockup. Told me it was nothing to worry about," she replied.

"Ok," he said before pressing his lips lightly to her bruise. She took his hand in hers and leaned against him as they waited for the cab.

Their cab had just pulled away from the curb outside the station when Andy started thinking about Marlo and what she'd said about knowing Sam. She remembered how Sam told her once how he'd never been friends with a girl before, which meant he and Marlo had been more than just friends. "So, uh, how do you know her, Officer Cruz?"

"Marlo? She was at 15 when she was a rookie. I was only a couple years on the job at the time." He looked over at Andy and knew that wasn't satisfying her curiosity. Not wanting to keep any secrets he continued. "We dated for a while."

"Was it serious?"

"She wanted something serious. I didn't feel the same way," he replied.

"By the looks of it, she still does," Andy said, wondering how he felt about that.

"You're not...Andy." He sighed out her name as he realized she was jealous. He nudged her chin with his knuckle until he could look directly into her yes. "Nothing's gonna happen with me and her. You gotta know that."

Sam's reassurance made her feel better and she gave him a smile before taking the hand still under her chin into her own and giving it a squeeze. "I do. I just...You might need to tell _her_ that." He pulled Andy against him, let her rest her head on his shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her.

Several minutes passed and Andy began worrying her bottom lip as the cab approached her condo. "I know you haven't been home yet and probably just want to sleep in your own bed, but I was wondering...I thought, maybe, uh, you could stay...with me," she said flustering her words as she tried not to get up too much hope. It was their first night back and he probably wanted to be in his own place.

He tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "My bed will still be there tomorrow." He tilted her head so he could lean in to press his lips to hers briefly.

As they got out of the cab and walked up to her condo, Andy couldn't help the nerves fluttering around her stomach. For months they'd been playing characters, enjoying whatever it was they were while putting off the hard stuff until they returned to their normal lives. But, here they were, finally home and it was time to open that can of worms. She wasn't ready to do that tonight though. Wanted to enjoy being Andy McNally again before jumping into all the serious stuff.

"Hey Sam..." She stopped a few feet from her door and waited for him to turn toward her. "We made a promise months ago...I don't want to forget it, but tonight..." She didn't even get a chance to finish her thought when Sam spoke up, knowing where she was going with her train of thought.

"We have two weeks mandatory leave before we're allowed back at work. Gives us plenty of time to talk." He cupped her cheek with his hand as he brought their faces close. "We busted the biggest child trafficking operation in Toronto. I think we can give ourselves time to enjoy that first."

Andy smiled, knowing they were on the same page. They could make this work, she was sure of that now.

* * *

The End.


End file.
